NSW skipper Paul Gallen tells Jarryd Hayne he's the leader of team
STATE of Origin means different things to different players.
Ultimately, we all want the same thing. But it's how we arrive at the winning result that makes every player in the NSW squad different.
My goals are obviously different from a debutant like Blake Ferguson or hooker Robbie Farah, who will orchestrate every set from dummy-half, handling the football more than any other player in our side.
Every decision we make on Wednesday night as individuals will have a bearing on the result.
But no player will have a greater say on the result for NSW than our fullback Jarryd Hayne.
Jarryd already knows this.
The moment I arrived in camp last Monday, I made a beeline for Jarryd to tell him exactly how I felt about the influence he can have on this Origin series.
At almost 100kg and 1.88m, Jarryd has the size, speed and power to terrorise Queensland.
The thing with Jarryd is no matter how strong or average his club form is, he always saves something special for Origin. The difference this time is that he's playing in the position he knows and loves. From fullback, he loves to get the ball in his hands.
He's virtually a second five-eighth for Parramatta.
And unlike previous years, when he's played on the wing for NSW, I reckon our options in attack will spike now that Jarryd is playing in the middle of the field.
In 16 Origin appearances, Jarryd has only played fullback for us on two occasions. And so it says a lot about the player Jarryd Hayne is that, even out of position as a winger, he's still been one of the first players chosen for NSW.
His move to fullback at the expense of an injured Brett Stewart couldn't be more timely for us.
His presence alone will have Queensland guessing.
There's a golden rule in rugby league that the most dangerous player on the field is the one with the football in his hands.
That rule doesn't apply to Jarryd.
Because when Jarryd gets the ball, the most dangerous player on the field is the teammate that's about to receive one of his 20m passes.
I sense a change has come over Jarryd at the Eels this year.
I suspect Ricky Stuart has something to do with that.
Ricky hates watching players fail to realise their potential. Jarryd is now realising his.
That laziness which many have linked to Jarryd throughout his career is all but gone.
How can you tell? In his defence.
Defence is about attitude. If you don't have the right attitude, or put simply if you have a lazy attitude, you wouldn't be able to do what Jarryd does.
I saw it the other night.
I was watching a Parramatta game and Jarryd had just made a covering tackle on the far right-hand side of the field.
Now, in the past Jarryd Hayne would have made the tackle, jogged back to the defensive line and waited for the opposition to go again.
Not anymore.
It was the fifth tackle, so Jarryd started running. No, sprinting.
I kept watching as Jarryd raced across field in a desperate attempt to shut down the next play.
He didn't make it in time to stop the kick, but it didn't matter. The motivation was there for all to see.
His desperation in defence is crucial to how we perform as a team. We need him doing everything possible to stop Queensland from crossing our stripe.
He needs to be bullet-proof at the back. He's our last line of defence and we'll need his aggression and size when it counts.
Jarryd might not be the captain of this side. But he's a leader.
This will be his 17th Origin appearance, two more than me. I hope it's his greatest. I know it can be.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...e-leader-of-team/story-fni3fqyo-1226655039069
