Why NSW fans won't be hearing from Latrell Mitchell
NSW halfback Nathan Cleary has leaped to the defence of Latrell Mitchell after the South Sydney star was one of two players who declined to conduct interviews at the Blues' open media day.
In a major break from the precedent set by ex-NSW coach Brad Fittler, Mitchell and Sydney Roosters prop Spencer Leniu were off limits on Monday after the Blues assembled in camp in Sydney.
Fittler insisted no player was given special treatment, and lived by the mantra that if players couldn't handle questions from the press pack then they wouldn't be able to deal with the rigours of State of Origin.
The Fittler approach was largely embraced by Michael Maguire for last year's series, despite the ex-Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers coach having had his fair share of challenges with the press.
But that open access approach appears to have fallen by the wayside under returning Blues coach Laurie Daley, with Mitchell and Leniu unavailable to discuss NSW's fortunes ahead of the May 28 series opener in Brisbane.
"At the end of the day, all of us as NSW fans and players, we want Latrell to be at his best come Wednesday night," Cleary said.
"If that's what he needs to do, that's what he needs to do."
Blues forward Angus Crichton added: "If that's what helps him be at his best then I'm all for it.
"He (Mitchell) has probably had enough stories written about him and good and bad, and I think if that's how he sees himself playing his best footy then I'm all for it."
Mitchell has been on a self-imposed media ban since being photographed with white powder in a hotel room in Dubbo last year.
Even in games where he has been captain or where he has produced match-winning plays for the Rabbitohs, the 27-year-old has been off limits and Souths have sent other players to accompany coach Wayne Bennett at their post-match press conferences.
The NSWRL said Mitchell's media ban was a matter for the NRL, who oversee the game's media guidelines, and South Sydney.
Mitchell sat alone in the NSWRL gym scrolling through his phone while most of his teammates conducted interviews on Monday.
Leniu, meanwhile, kept a similarly low profile.
The Roosters prop has not spoken publicly since his heated run-in with Queensland legend turned Nine Network commentator Johnathan Thurston, who is part of Billy Slater's Maroons coaching staff.
Leniu unloaded on Thurston last month following a Roosters' win over Brisbane.
The Samoan international is believed to have taken issue with comments Thurston made when Leniu was suspended for racially abusing Broncos playmaker Ezra Mam last season.
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NSW have only once gone through the first two games of a series with one or less debutants, in 1991 when there were still mass changes across the team. This situation is already in direct contrast to last year, when the Blues axed four players and Joseph Aukuso-Suaalii was suspended after their series-opening loss. Queensland are also in a state of flux, with Daly Cherry-Evans, the Maroons' captain and most experienced player in their squad, set to be dropped. Daley is, by his nature, a loyal selector. In his last stint as NSW coach he routinely opted against mass changes, and stuck with the same 17 for his entire last series in 2017. Playing into his hands this time is that he has returned to a team set up for success, after they roared back to life to win last year's series-decider in Brisbane. The age of the Blues' group also gives Daley a chance to set up for long-term stability, with Barnett the oldest player in the game-one squad at age 31. 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