http://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/lu...s/news-story/b7f2cc2ae5d08776520528d8c9c18560
Luke Keary backtracks on original State of Origin plans
April 10, 201712:50pm
LUKE Keary says he’s now happy to be considered for NSW at State of Origin time but it doesn’t mean he thinks he’s ready to pull on the Blues jersey just yet.
The Sydney Roosters five-eighth’s Origin eligibility has been a point of contention since his debut at South Sydney in 2013 and now it has the potential to return to the fore.
Keary was born in Queensland and lived in the northern state until age 10, before moving with his parents to NSW. He even trained in a junior Maroons camp in 2012 but revised eligibility rules brought in that same year deemed him a future NSW player.
At the time, Keary was strong in his view he still wanted to represent Queensland. He applied to play for the Maroons in 2014 but the NRL rejected his bid.
However, Keary says he has now bought in to the Blues’ system.
“I’m definitely in their boat if they ever need me,” Keary said of NSW on Monday. “I think I went in and met a few of the boys.
“I learnt what they’re all about, I learnt what the team is trying to become and jumped on board straight away.”
Keary’s eligibility issues were a hypothetical problem for a long time, voiced by not only himself but former Queensland coach Mal Meninga and Broncos mentor Wayne Bennett.
Queensland has been able to select players who were born in NSW and spent their early childhoods there, such as Greg Inglis and Israel Folau, because they went on to play junior rugby league up north.
Now the amended rules could have significant implications for Keary. He was an early leader in the Dally M race in the opening month, and his combination with former NSW halfback Mitchell Pearce has been one of the best in the competition.
Pearce was labelled by NSW Origin advisor Peter Sterling on Sunday as the form half of the NRL, while coach Laurie Daley has preferred to go with club combinations in 2013 and 2014.
However, Keary is far from convinced his name should be in the Origin conversation.
“I think it’s pretty premature talk at the moment,” he said. “I just think you’ve got to play consistent football for two or three seasons before you can start putting your hand up for anything like that.”
Keary’s Origin eligibility was the joke of Moore Park on Monday. “He doesn’t know what he’s doing — he’s going to be a Queenslander next year I’m sure,” prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves said.
But regardless of the controversy surrounding his allegiances, Waerea-Hargreaves has no doubt that Keary should be considered for the Blues.
“He’s proved himself,” the Kiwi prop said. “He’s won a premiership and he knows what it takes to win one.
“Him and Mitchell Pearce are starting to really bond and get their combinations going.”
