Phil Gould was discussing this idea the other day based on comments the Wok had made. Apparently, some people in the know consider Farah's ultra attacking style to be incompatible with the defensive-orientation of Origin footy. Other players in the past have been overlooked on this basis, such as Preston Campbell, Blacklock & Peachey.
IMO they're merely confirming that origin games are the most boring events of the year. The play the balls slow down, the attack is smothered by encroaching defences and you're lucky to see the ball go two wide of the ruck more than once in the first 20 minutes. Seemingly, if you minimise the role of a hooker you're also mitigating their chance of making mistakes- Buderus is testament to this. He picks up and passes, picks up and passes.... the one or two times he tries to dart down the blind and throw a deft pass inside he looks as ungainly as John Morris putting in a grubber kick. I'd be extremely disappointed, although not surprised, to see Ennis, De Gois or Craig Wing come into serious contemplation for the NSW hooking role. It's like opting to drive the smart car over a Ferrari because you're worried about picking up a few speeding tickets. Seriously, if you have potentially the best player in the league at your disposal, why not use him?
