Good club player, very good even.
Not up to Origin standard, and has proved it across multiple years and Origin series. Absolutely fair enough that he was given a crack at Origin, even fair enough that he has been given an extended one, but at some point you just have to cut your losses and move on to the next bloke. It's extremely ironic that the NSW selectors, normally more than happy to drop a player at the drop of a hat, seem unable to admit they're wrong on such an obvious case like Pearce.
If Pearce had been given 3 series to establish himself but so too had Carney, then there wouldn't be as much frustration because that isn't a hypocritical selection plan. But Carney, potentially a much more damaging Origin half than Pearce if sheer talent is anything to go on, is given the flick after just 3 games while Pearce is still an automatic pick. Pearce doesn't get crap for being unable to beat Queensland, he's gets crap because he gets a free ride into the team every year while no one else gets the same privilege. It's the blatant double standard that gets people pissed off.
That's why he's such a touchy subject that gets peoples frustrations boiling over. Quite a different thing from actively hating the bloke himself I think.
