Blues hooker Damien Cook has thrown his robust help behind under-fire New South Wales coach Brad Fittler, as a “left field” possibility for the Blues high job emerges.
Cook is adamant Fittler ought to stay Blues coach past 2023, with the Souths rake believing the blame for New South Wales being down 2-0 ought to fall on the shoulders of the gamers.
“I think he’ll be here next year and I think he needs to be,” Cook informed reporters on Wednesday.
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“We’re the ones going out there, we’re the ones doing the plays, making tackles, all that sort of stuff.
“I haven’t been involved with a better coach that knows how to build you up for a game and get you ready, but for us, it’s been what we done on the field.
“We had a very simple game plan and we couldn’t do it. That is nothing to do with the coaches, we knew what it was and if you’d seen it, it was very simple and we couldn’t execute it.
“You have all the quality players in here, so it’s up to us to nail that and we should be much better, especially at this level. It’s up to us in Game III.”
The Blues have been belted 32-6 in Game II, with Cook nearly taking part in a full recreation at centre after an early pectoral damage to Tom Trbojevic.
Cook’s efficiency in a international place whereas lining up towards among the recreation’s finest centres was admirable, however Fittler’s choice to place him there as an alternative of the likes of Cameron Murray was closely criticised.
“You’d expect nothing less from Damien but I disagree him in relation to the game plan,” Fox League’s James Hooper stated on NRL360.
“The decision to play Damien in the centres was one of the big failures over the course of the two games that we’ve seen in the series to date.
“I can understand why he wants to support him but there aren’t any guarantees Freddy is there next year.”
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Fellow journalist Michael Carayannis agreed with Hooper, saying it might be “the point of no return” for Fittler if the Blues have been to be swept with a loss in Game III.
Cook’s feedback on Wednesday got here as former participant and Fox League’s Alex McKinnon threw NRL nice Sam Burgess’s title as a possible alternative for Fittler if the latter is relieved of his duties after the 2023 State of Origin collection.
Burgess, an Englishman who didn’t symbolize Queensland or New South Wales, is presently an assistant coach with the Rabbitohs who’s well-regarded in accordance with Hooper.
“Look, it’s come out of left field but everything you hear out of Redfern dressing rooms, he’s obviously been an assistant at the Bunnies for a number of seasons now,” Hooper stated.
“Speaking to players, when Sam Burgess walks into the dressing rooms, there’s an aura and everybody listens.
“It’s a circuit-breaker, it’s outside the box but I’m not saying it wouldn’t work.”
NRL360 co-host Braith Anasta thinks Burgess is a good possibility for the Blues, labelling him “a beast”.
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“I quite like it … I think Sammy is a warrior,” Anasta stated.
“He would instil passion in the jersey no matter what that jersey is and if he surrounds himself with the right staff and New South Welshmen in that environment.”
Gorden Tallis believed the Blues could be making a mistake hiring Burgess, pointing to New Zealander Graham Lowe’s two-year stint as Maroons coach in 1991-1992.
Lowe is the one non-Australian to educate within the State of Origin collection and went 3-3 in his six video games in command of Queensland.
“I love Sam, he’s one of my favourite players. But we went down that road did Queensland and we made a mistake getting a Kiwi to coach us in Graham Lowe,” Tallis stated.
“I’d rather lose as a Queenslander with a New South Welshmen (as coach) then lose with an Englishman in charge.”
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Tallis went onto title a couple of different potential choices for the Blues gig, particularly in “the media”
“There are so many legends, so many smart guys in the media … One of them has to put their hand up,” Tallis stated.
“There’s Gus (Gould), Matty and Joey Johns.”
“People aren’t going to be putting their hands up out of respect to Brad Fittler until that position is vacant so if it does become vacant, the conversation will move a lot more,” Carayannis replied.
Source: www.foxsports.com.au