A 1-4 series record is a tough sell. With the talent NSW have at their disposal, you could probably install an average punter as coach and they'd likely walk away with victory. Still, it feels like it should have gone to Toovey or Buderus - possibly even Joey if we wanted to cash in on TV ratings.
Thinking back on Daley's previous stint as coach and I don't think he did a lot wrong.
This was his initial team:
1. Jarryd Hayne
2. Brett Morris
3. Michael Jennings
4. Josh Morris
5. Blake Ferguson*
6. James Maloney*
7. Mitchell Pearce
8. Paul Gallen
9. Robbie Farah
10. James Tamou
11. Luke Lewis
12. Ryan Hoffman
13. Greg Bird
14. Andrew Fifita*
15. Trent Merrin
16. Josh Reynolds*
17. Anthony Watmough
18. John Sutton
I don't see any notable omissions and the team was successful. The issue with that campaign is that Hayne missed the rest of the series and they went from Blake Ferguson to Nathan Merritt in the blink of one game after injury knocked every other contender out of the way. Daley rectified the mistake and put McManus there in Game III which was about the only alternative they could come up with.
The biggest issue for NSW was the halves. Pearce had the talent but just lacked the composure to thrive at that Origin. Unfortunately for NSW, it was slim pickings with J. Reynolds, Carney and Mullen shaping as the alternatives.
While I'm not excusing Daley entirely I view this period as a reflection of the roster and their inability to take that next step.
Now that's just one team-list, but I think it was representative of his time as coach and he usually went with common sense teams.
