Slater HITS BACK at Woods ‘grub' comment
State of Origin: Billy Slater has responded to Aaron Woods calling him a grub in his pre-Origin Game II press conference.
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The Advertiser
17 minutes ago
- The Advertiser
Slater says Maroons won't be dictated to on kick-off
A defiant Billy Slater has declared Queensland won't be pressured into kicking off to NSW firebrand Spencer Leniu in State of Origin II. As Maroons prop Tino Fa'asuamaleaui said he was not scared of Leniu on Tuesday, Slater would not be drawn on whether the Maroons would kick to the Blues front-rower. Of the four long kick-offs from Queensland in their game one loss, none went to Leniu or Payne Haas, in what has since been labelled by some as a pre-determined plan. The situation left Leniu fuming, with the Sydney Roosters prop appearing to swear in frustration as the Maroons changed the direction of their kick to avoid him. Haas has largely stayed away from the debate over the past week, but on Monday said he would want the ball kicked off to Leniu if he was in the Queensland side, since he'd want the chance to take down a powerful rival. Former NSW front-rower Willie Mason has also accused the Maroons of being "s**t scared" of Leniu, while Braith Anasta labelled Queensland "weak". Slater dodged a question on Tuesday on whether Leniu would have the chance to take a hit-up from a kick-off at Optus Stadium. But the Maroons coach did defend his team's right to prioritise their own tactics over the entertainment factor. "We don't ask Nathan (Cleary) to kick to a specific corner. He does what he wants," Slater said of the Blues halfback. "He gets his game on. So, we'll be getting our game on. "I get all the dilemma about it, but at the end of the day, it's about building a game and a game plan that best suits you. "It's not about what (the media) want or anyone else wants." Asked about the issue, Maroons front-rower Fa'asuamaleaui rejected any suggestion Queensland's pack were scared of Leniu. "I'm not scared of anyone," Fa'asuamaleaui said. "I just want to do my job for Queensland and I'm not going to back down from anyone and that's our whole team. "We're just going to get out there, get our game on and do what we do best and play our game. "(We're) not backing down from anyone." Slater wouldn't say whether Queensland would make late changes to their pack, or if Kurt Mann could start at hooker in place of Harry Grant. The Maroons have won six of eight games when Grant has come off the bench, as opposed to a 0-4 record with him starting. NSW second-rower Angus Crichton had accused Queensland of mind games last week, refusing to believe Jeremiah Nanai and Pat Carrigan weren't starting. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow has already let slip that he will move to the right wing at Optus Stadium, after playing left centre in the series-opening 18-6 loss in Brisbane. That defeat has piled the pressure on Slater, who has already axed captain Daly Cherry-Evans and replaced him with Tom Dearden in the halves. A defiant Billy Slater has declared Queensland won't be pressured into kicking off to NSW firebrand Spencer Leniu in State of Origin II. As Maroons prop Tino Fa'asuamaleaui said he was not scared of Leniu on Tuesday, Slater would not be drawn on whether the Maroons would kick to the Blues front-rower. Of the four long kick-offs from Queensland in their game one loss, none went to Leniu or Payne Haas, in what has since been labelled by some as a pre-determined plan. The situation left Leniu fuming, with the Sydney Roosters prop appearing to swear in frustration as the Maroons changed the direction of their kick to avoid him. Haas has largely stayed away from the debate over the past week, but on Monday said he would want the ball kicked off to Leniu if he was in the Queensland side, since he'd want the chance to take down a powerful rival. Former NSW front-rower Willie Mason has also accused the Maroons of being "s**t scared" of Leniu, while Braith Anasta labelled Queensland "weak". Slater dodged a question on Tuesday on whether Leniu would have the chance to take a hit-up from a kick-off at Optus Stadium. But the Maroons coach did defend his team's right to prioritise their own tactics over the entertainment factor. "We don't ask Nathan (Cleary) to kick to a specific corner. He does what he wants," Slater said of the Blues halfback. "He gets his game on. So, we'll be getting our game on. "I get all the dilemma about it, but at the end of the day, it's about building a game and a game plan that best suits you. "It's not about what (the media) want or anyone else wants." Asked about the issue, Maroons front-rower Fa'asuamaleaui rejected any suggestion Queensland's pack were scared of Leniu. "I'm not scared of anyone," Fa'asuamaleaui said. "I just want to do my job for Queensland and I'm not going to back down from anyone and that's our whole team. "We're just going to get out there, get our game on and do what we do best and play our game. "(We're) not backing down from anyone." Slater wouldn't say whether Queensland would make late changes to their pack, or if Kurt Mann could start at hooker in place of Harry Grant. The Maroons have won six of eight games when Grant has come off the bench, as opposed to a 0-4 record with him starting. NSW second-rower Angus Crichton had accused Queensland of mind games last week, refusing to believe Jeremiah Nanai and Pat Carrigan weren't starting. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow has already let slip that he will move to the right wing at Optus Stadium, after playing left centre in the series-opening 18-6 loss in Brisbane. That defeat has piled the pressure on Slater, who has already axed captain Daly Cherry-Evans and replaced him with Tom Dearden in the halves. A defiant Billy Slater has declared Queensland won't be pressured into kicking off to NSW firebrand Spencer Leniu in State of Origin II. As Maroons prop Tino Fa'asuamaleaui said he was not scared of Leniu on Tuesday, Slater would not be drawn on whether the Maroons would kick to the Blues front-rower. Of the four long kick-offs from Queensland in their game one loss, none went to Leniu or Payne Haas, in what has since been labelled by some as a pre-determined plan. The situation left Leniu fuming, with the Sydney Roosters prop appearing to swear in frustration as the Maroons changed the direction of their kick to avoid him. Haas has largely stayed away from the debate over the past week, but on Monday said he would want the ball kicked off to Leniu if he was in the Queensland side, since he'd want the chance to take down a powerful rival. Former NSW front-rower Willie Mason has also accused the Maroons of being "s**t scared" of Leniu, while Braith Anasta labelled Queensland "weak". Slater dodged a question on Tuesday on whether Leniu would have the chance to take a hit-up from a kick-off at Optus Stadium. But the Maroons coach did defend his team's right to prioritise their own tactics over the entertainment factor. "We don't ask Nathan (Cleary) to kick to a specific corner. He does what he wants," Slater said of the Blues halfback. "He gets his game on. So, we'll be getting our game on. "I get all the dilemma about it, but at the end of the day, it's about building a game and a game plan that best suits you. "It's not about what (the media) want or anyone else wants." Asked about the issue, Maroons front-rower Fa'asuamaleaui rejected any suggestion Queensland's pack were scared of Leniu. "I'm not scared of anyone," Fa'asuamaleaui said. "I just want to do my job for Queensland and I'm not going to back down from anyone and that's our whole team. "We're just going to get out there, get our game on and do what we do best and play our game. "(We're) not backing down from anyone." Slater wouldn't say whether Queensland would make late changes to their pack, or if Kurt Mann could start at hooker in place of Harry Grant. The Maroons have won six of eight games when Grant has come off the bench, as opposed to a 0-4 record with him starting. NSW second-rower Angus Crichton had accused Queensland of mind games last week, refusing to believe Jeremiah Nanai and Pat Carrigan weren't starting. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow has already let slip that he will move to the right wing at Optus Stadium, after playing left centre in the series-opening 18-6 loss in Brisbane. That defeat has piled the pressure on Slater, who has already axed captain Daly Cherry-Evans and replaced him with Tom Dearden in the halves.
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Is trash talk in Origin dead?!
RLG: Following the lack of war of words between the two camps in the build up to the first two games of the Origin series, it's led to the debate as to whether trash talk is dead in Origin.
ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Free-to-air AFL and cricket could disappear from parts of SA and NSW
Regional residents in parts of South Australia and New South Wales could lose access to Seven Network channels on their TVs from next month, after negotiations with WIN Network broke down. WIN announced it would cease broadcasting 7, 7mate, and 7two into the South Australian markets of Mount Gambier, in the south-east, and Loxton in the Riverland, as well as Griffith in New South Wales' Riverina from July 1. It would mean that audiences in those broadcast areas would be unable to watch free-to-air sports, including football and test cricket, except through streaming services. WIN Network said the decision followed Seven West Media's decision not to renew its broadcast agreement. "While we are disappointed with Seven West Media's decision, we respect their right to pursue their commercial strategies," chief executive Andrew Lancaster said. WIN Network said no jobs were expected to be lost, with local operations and staff to remain in Mount Gambier, Berri and Griffith. Potential blow for locals Riverland Adelaide Crows supporter group vice-president Peter Kennedy said he "couldn't believe" the announcement. "Hopefully, something can happen that makes it so it doesn't take place," he said. "It just seems crazy to me." He said, while some members of the club had used streaming services to watch games, older fans would struggle. Mr Kennedy said he knew of people who didn't know what 7plus was or how to use it and others with no wi-fi connections. "It's going to be challenging for them, to say the least," he said. The Mayor of Griffith City Council, Doug Curran, said access to free-to-air sporting games could inspire people to take up the sport, particularly young Australians. "You only have to go to some of our sporting ovals on the weekend and see all the youth and even some of the adults that play sport," he said. "A lot of that is on the back of seeing some of the superstars playing on TV. "This is taking away from that enjoyment, from that ability for our youth to see what they might become in the future." Mr Curran said he was also concerned that paying for a subscription to access sporting games on streaming services like Kayo would put more pressure on family budgets. "It puts more pressure on, and free-to-air seems to continue to let us down moving forward," Mr Curran said. Hopes negotiations continue A spokesperson for Seven said the network was "disappointed" it had not reached an agreement with WIN. "The communities living in the Riverland and Griffith are incredibly important to Seven and, pleasingly, they will continue to have access to all of our content, including the AFL and cricket, via our live and free streaming platform, 7plus," they said. The network says it is happy to continue negotiations with WIN to broadcast into those markets. Mr Kennedy said if an agreement could not be reached, there would be pushback from the community. "I just hope that they have had all the conversations they can and should have, that they've both been reasonable, and they're both trying to find a solution, rather than just shutting it down," he said. Seven West Media recently acquired a number of regional licences from Southern Cross Austereo, including Tasmania, Darwin, Spencer Gulf, Broken Hill, Mt Isa and remote, central and eastern Australia. The Seven spokesperson said the deal was a sign of the network's "ongoing commitment to regional markets", with the acquisition expected to be completed by June 30.
