At last: Mr Nice Guy Merritt gets chance to shine at Origin
Date
June 19, 2013
Michael Carayannis
Call-up: Nathan Merritt, right, at the team photo. Photo: James Brickwood
For every Blake Ferguson there are any number of Nathan Merritts involved in rugby league, which makes the South Sydney winger's NSW call-up even more timely for the code.
Merritt, widely regarded as one of the most popular and admired players in the game, came into the Blues camp on Tuesday to replace Ferguson wearing just the clothes on his back. He had rushed from South Sydney training at Redfern Oval to join his new teammates for the team photo, where he was fitted with an over-sized shirt, and a mid-afternoon training session. And boy was he happy. After 12 seasons in the top grade, Merritt has finally ditched the tag of being known as one of the ''best players never to play Origin''.
"It's a reward for me," Merritt said. "I've been hanging around for a while now. I'm definitely not going to let it slip away from me.
"It's sad to see Fergo get suspended. Hopefully he gets himself sorted out and surrounds himself with positive and good people. It's a chance [for me]. I'll take this chance and hopefully I can play good and keep it."
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After being on the fringe of representative selection for the best part of five years, Merritt conceded he thought his Origin opportunity had passed him by.
"I thought my time was up," Merritt said. "I thought I'd never get a chance. I'm here now and I'm honoured and it's an unbelievable feeling. I'm looking forward to it.
"I tried to brush it off and not let it concern me. It affects your football if you let it get to you. I learnt to brush it off and concentrate on what I needed to do that weekend. It's all paid off and I'm living the dream."
Doubts over his size and strength have prolonged his representative absence but coach Laurie Daley said Merritt would offer a new dimension to his side.
"He is a guy that provides you with something a little bit different," he said.
"He can sniff out a try and gets through his work. He is a professional and at Origin level you need professionals who will do their job."
At 30, Merritt is a mature debutant. His selection drew praise from uncle Ricky Walford, a former NSW winger, who said Merritt would be up to the task.
"He certainly deserves it," Walford said. "We all know he can score tries. He can sniff out a try. What he will do is he has an uncanny knack of being at the right place at the right time. Playing club footy he might have a different role in Origin. That's up to Laurie and coaching staff. He certainly will be an asset from where I sit.
"He is ready to go. After he missed out on the first team and I sent him a text and told him to hang in there and play well for his club. He has been able to do that week in week out and has been very consistent in the last few seasons.''
The Blues finally got to on-field action on Tuesday with a short 45-minute ball work session at Coogee Oval. Neither Brett nor Josh Morris trained and Anthony Watmough joined Michael Jennings on the sidelines, but Josh Dugan allayed any fears about his ankle, completing the full session.
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http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...e-at-origin-20130618-2ogsz.html#ixzz2WcCi5gqb
