NSW coach Laurie Daley has set a deadline for Mitchell Moses to prove his fitness after rolling the dice by naming the Parramatta playmaker in his Blues side for game two of the State of Origin series.
Daley unveiled his squad for Origin II in Melbourne on June 17 in alphabetical order on Monday, calling up uncapped Dolphins rookie Isaiya Katoa and bringing Payne Haas and Api Koroisau back into the fold.
The Blues lead the series 1-0 and will relocate to camp on the NSW Central Coast on Tuesday evening before training for the first time on Wednesday.
Daley will hope to have Moses on deck at the MCG after he was ruled out of the May 27 series opener in Sydney less than 48 hours before kick-off with a minor hamstring strain.
The Eels star hasn’t played at NRL level since — including Monday’s narrow loss to Canterbury — but Daley wants to see the Parramatta halfback hit the ground running.
“Our first training session is on Wednesday and that’s always been an educational day rather than a heavy session,” Daley said.
“You’d want them to participate in that but certainly by Thursday you’d need to be humming.
“You don’t want to be taking guys in underdone, you’ve got to make sure that they get onto the paddock and add confidence in their own preparation.
“I think that’s the key - it’s more about them getting themselves ready to go … rather than getting to the weekend and not feeling great.”
Provided he encounters no further issues, Moses is likely to partner NSW halfback Nathan Cleary as the Blues look to clinch the series with a game to spare.
“If he (Moses) finishes all his protocol for his hamstring, he’ll be fine to play,” said Eels coach Jason Ryles.
Assuming Moses is fit to line up in Melbourne, Canberra rookie Ethan Strange, who starred in the 22-20 game one victory, will revert to the bench.
Despite the Blues’ struggling through the series opener until Kalyn Ponga’s second-half send-off, Daley has resisted wholesale changes.
Broncos front-rower Haas will vie with Mitch Barnett and Addin Fonua-Blake for the two starting prop berths, with Newcastle’s Jacob Saifiti dropping out of Daley’s 21-man squad as a result of Haas’s return.
Wests Tigers’ Api Koroisau replaces injured Cronulla hooker Blayke Brailey and is in line for his first Origin appearance since 2023.
The other injury concern for Daley is Canterbury centre Stephen Crichton, who has battled an AC joint issue in his shoulder all season.
“Last week when I re-did it, I ripped off all the cartilages, and somehow the next morning I probably felt the best it’s felt ever since I had done it,” Crichton said on Monday.
“I only needed to needle at the start of (Monday’s) the game and didn’t have to do it at halftime, which was a good sign.”
NSW SQUAD (alphabetical): Mitch Barnett, Nathan Cleary, Stephen Crichton, Addin Fonua-Blake, Payne Haas, Isaiya Katoa*, Tolu Koula, Api Koroisau, Dylan Lucas*, Casey McLean, Mitch Moses, Cameron Murray, Haumole Olakau’atu, Victor Radley, Reece Robson, Kotoni Staggs, Ethan Strange, James Tedesco, Brian To’o, Isaah Yeo (capt), Hudson Young.
*Denotes uncapped
