Coates floats high above To'o in Maroons aerial threat
Leaping winger Xavier Coates has a 12 centimetre height advantage over opposite number Brian To'o which Queensland hopes will translate to a 12-point gain in the State of Origin season opener.
Right winger Coates (194cm), a former high jump champion at school, has been hailed by Maroons and Melbourne teammate Harry Grant as an "aerial threat" of the highest order ahead of Wednesday night's Suncorp Stadium clash.
Grant has also played down any concerns about his Storm coach Craig Bellamy working with NSW as an advisor to coach Laurie Daley.
With tough as teak left winger To'o (182cm) not a renowned leaper, the scope is there for Queensland to send plenty of bombs in his direction. Noted Maroons bomb disposal expert Jeremiah Nanai is also set to line up in the second-row on the right edge to add to the advantage.
Coates, 24, plays left wing for the Storm but is no stranger to playing on the other side of the field.
"Xavier has a real aerial threat. A lot of people don't know he started on the right side of the field as a player and he changed to the left side of the field at Melbourne," Grant said.
"He had to change his whole dynamic of competing and contesting kicks and learning how to jump off the opposite foot.
"He is a real athlete in that sense. He knows his strengths and he just works on it extremely hard. He has done that for a number of years now so he has that in his back pocket. We look forward to seeing Xavier compete on those kicks."
The Maroons put up plenty of bombs in the direction of Coates and Nanai in an opposed session against Sunshine Coast Falcons on Sunday.
Grant acknowledged peppering To'o would be an option.
"It could be a strength," he said.
"There's plenty of players in their team that have got threats we have to shut down and we have guys in our team that we need to bring out.
"(Bombing To'o) is definitely one part of it but you only get certain opportunities to do that in a game and we have to earn those opportunities through the style of footy we want to play."
Bellamy, who coached the Blues to three consecutive series losses from 2008-2010 is back plotting the demise of Storm quartet Grant, Coates, Cameron Munster, Trent Loiero and the rest of the Maroons squad. "I haven't had any contact with Craig," Grant said.
"I probably haven't thought about it too much. If I worry about what he is doing or what he is saying it will take too much attention away from my game and my team and the game on Wednesday night. I just need to worry about preparing well and performing well."
Grant said he was fully fit after missing a month with a hamstring injury.
"I got back for the Cronulla game (in round 11) and I am really confident in how I pulled up from that game," he said.
" I went through a fair bit a few years ago with a hamstring injury and I have really learnt from that.
"That was through the Origin period, so I definitely learnt from that. Maybe in 2021 I was surfing too much. I have focused on my body and made sure I'm alright for Wednesday night."
Leaping winger Xavier Coates has a 12 centimetre height advantage over opposite number Brian To'o which Queensland hopes will translate to a 12-point gain in the State of Origin season opener.
Right winger Coates (194cm), a former high jump champion at school, has been hailed by Maroons and Melbourne teammate Harry Grant as an "aerial threat" of the highest order ahead of Wednesday night's Suncorp Stadium clash.
Grant has also played down any concerns about his Storm coach Craig Bellamy working with NSW as an advisor to coach Laurie Daley.
With tough as teak left winger To'o (182cm) not a renowned leaper, the scope is there for Queensland to send plenty of bombs in his direction. Noted Maroons bomb disposal expert Jeremiah Nanai is also set to line up in the second-row on the right edge to add to the advantage.
Coates, 24, plays left wing for the Storm but is no stranger to playing on the other side of the field.
"Xavier has a real aerial threat. A lot of people don't know he started on the right side of the field as a player and he changed to the left side of the field at Melbourne," Grant said.
"He had to change his whole dynamic of competing and contesting kicks and learning how to jump off the opposite foot.
"He is a real athlete in that sense. He knows his strengths and he just works on it extremely hard. He has done that for a number of years now so he has that in his back pocket. We look forward to seeing Xavier compete on those kicks."
The Maroons put up plenty of bombs in the direction of Coates and Nanai in an opposed session against Sunshine Coast Falcons on Sunday.
Grant acknowledged peppering To'o would be an option.
"It could be a strength," he said.
"There's plenty of players in their team that have got threats we have to shut down and we have guys in our team that we need to bring out.
"(Bombing To'o) is definitely one part of it but you only get certain opportunities to do that in a game and we have to earn those opportunities through the style of footy we want to play."
Bellamy, who coached the Blues to three consecutive series losses from 2008-2010 is back plotting the demise of Storm quartet Grant, Coates, Cameron Munster, Trent Loiero and the rest of the Maroons squad. "I haven't had any contact with Craig," Grant said.
"I probably haven't thought about it too much. If I worry about what he is doing or what he is saying it will take too much attention away from my game and my team and the game on Wednesday night. I just need to worry about preparing well and performing well."
Grant said he was fully fit after missing a month with a hamstring injury.
"I got back for the Cronulla game (in round 11) and I am really confident in how I pulled up from that game," he said.
" I went through a fair bit a few years ago with a hamstring injury and I have really learnt from that.
"That was through the Origin period, so I definitely learnt from that. Maybe in 2021 I was surfing too much. I have focused on my body and made sure I'm alright for Wednesday night."
Leaping winger Xavier Coates has a 12 centimetre height advantage over opposite number Brian To'o which Queensland hopes will translate to a 12-point gain in the State of Origin season opener.
Right winger Coates (194cm), a former high jump champion at school, has been hailed by Maroons and Melbourne teammate Harry Grant as an "aerial threat" of the highest order ahead of Wednesday night's Suncorp Stadium clash.
Grant has also played down any concerns about his Storm coach Craig Bellamy working with NSW as an advisor to coach Laurie Daley.
With tough as teak left winger To'o (182cm) not a renowned leaper, the scope is there for Queensland to send plenty of bombs in his direction. Noted Maroons bomb disposal expert Jeremiah Nanai is also set to line up in the second-row on the right edge to add to the advantage.
Coates, 24, plays left wing for the Storm but is no stranger to playing on the other side of the field.
"Xavier has a real aerial threat. A lot of people don't know he started on the right side of the field as a player and he changed to the left side of the field at Melbourne," Grant said.
"He had to change his whole dynamic of competing and contesting kicks and learning how to jump off the opposite foot.
"He is a real athlete in that sense. He knows his strengths and he just works on it extremely hard. He has done that for a number of years now so he has that in his back pocket. We look forward to seeing Xavier compete on those kicks."
The Maroons put up plenty of bombs in the direction of Coates and Nanai in an opposed session against Sunshine Coast Falcons on Sunday.
Grant acknowledged peppering To'o would be an option.
"It could be a strength," he said.
"There's plenty of players in their team that have got threats we have to shut down and we have guys in our team that we need to bring out.
"(Bombing To'o) is definitely one part of it but you only get certain opportunities to do that in a game and we have to earn those opportunities through the style of footy we want to play."
Bellamy, who coached the Blues to three consecutive series losses from 2008-2010 is back plotting the demise of Storm quartet Grant, Coates, Cameron Munster, Trent Loiero and the rest of the Maroons squad. "I haven't had any contact with Craig," Grant said.
"I probably haven't thought about it too much. If I worry about what he is doing or what he is saying it will take too much attention away from my game and my team and the game on Wednesday night. I just need to worry about preparing well and performing well."
Grant said he was fully fit after missing a month with a hamstring injury.
"I got back for the Cronulla game (in round 11) and I am really confident in how I pulled up from that game," he said.
" I went through a fair bit a few years ago with a hamstring injury and I have really learnt from that.
"That was through the Origin period, so I definitely learnt from that. Maybe in 2021 I was surfing too much. I have focused on my body and made sure I'm alright for Wednesday night."
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