NSW lets get serious: Centre Combo

[Sleep]

When the team gets named tonight I expect it to be Lyon and Cooper in the centres. It's disappointing for Jennings but at the same time I'll be really happy to have him playing for Penrith during the first Origin at least.
Cooper had a good game against the Sharks but has been well below his best this year but he's got the experience and hasn't let anyone down on the big stage. I'd imagine he'll be one of the first dropped though if we struggle to get points in the first game though.

[_Johnsy]

• Gidley
• Hayne
• Jennings
• Cooper/Lyon
• Monaghan
• Campese
• Wallace

Lawrence on bench

[Godz Illa]

If they pick Creagh as the left backrower then they can put a perceived weaker defender next to him and still be comfortable.

[Jason Maher]

New South Wales need to pick a team that can score points. Defensive weaknesses can be worked on much easier than attacking deficiencies. For mine Jennings has a mortgage on one spot, with Cooper and Lyon fighting for the other. I would consider Cooper at centre and Lyon at five-eighth as an option as well.

[mxlegend99]

If we're going to play a centre out of position, it should be Michael Jennings on the wing. I'd play him outside of Jamie Lyon rather then Matt Cooper. He has the pace and his perceived defensive weaknesses would be easier to hide.

Halves have to be Peter Wallace and Jarrod Mullen/Terry Campese.

[abpanther]

Originally Posted by mxlegend99

If we're going to play a centre out of position, it should be Michael Jennings on the wing. I'd play him outside of Jamie Lyon rather then Matt Cooper. He has the pace and his perceived defensive weaknesses would be easier to hide.

Halves have to be Peter Wallace and Jarrod Mullen/Terry Campese.

My concern with that is they may bomb him all night and he may not withstand it, he ain't the biggest guy.

[mxlegend99]

It might be a bit of a concern for him, but given his desire to play as a fullback you would imagine he could do a decent enough job at covering bombs on the wing. The only time he would really struggle is when they are being contested by someone like Israel Folau... any player will struggle against him. He just has to make sure if he is against Folau he aims for bashing the ball out rather then trying to catch it. Even if he managed, Folau would just steal it.