Blues coach Michael Maguire has doubled down on his ‘Glass House’ jibe, warning the Maroons to think twice before criticising his team’s aggressive tactics in Melbourne after legends such as Gorden Tallis mocked the way NSW bullied Queensland.
Maguire set the stage for a heated second game at the MCG when he made the Glass Houses call that resonated throughout the next 10 days, and he hasn’t let that refrain deter him from repeating the remark in Sydney on Monday morning.
The Blues go into the deciding game of the series aiming to complete a famous comeback win, with NSW apparently in the minds of their rivals in the role of opponent who was bullied on the field, something which did not sit well with some of their former legends.
Former Queensland captain Tallis was particularly vocal on NRL 360 about Blues centre Latrell Mitchell getting away with pushing Reece Walsh when the ball was already dead.
In 2000, Tallis was infamously sent off for calling referee Bill Harrigan a “cheat,” but throughout his career he also enjoyed provoking the crowd and opposing players.
Mitchell’s shove was one of several examples of New South Wales players outplaying or outplaying their Queensland rivals. The Maroons were unable to fight back and were soundly beaten in Melbourne.
Maguire has heard the criticism but cannot understand why there is so much talk from north of the border when Maroons assistant Nate Myles was allowed to rant about rookie Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii with impunity after he was sent off in Game 1.
“Glass houses again. If you go back in time, you’ll see some of the things they did,” Maguire said.
“We’re keeping it on the field. There were some things off the field that probably came up in the first game that you can look at.
“We will look at how we want to play and we will stick to it.
“It was nice to see that the boys actually stood up for each other and played the way we wanted to play.
“It’s a fine line and we’ve talked about it, but I think the way the players have shown they want to play is the style NSW wants to approach it with.”
Meanwhile, Maguire was not discouraged when asked why the Blues agreed to give the full team a media presence on Monday afternoon, while the Maroons decided to cancel the pre-match event.
However, he did try a small trial with the Maroons, who had always talked about doing this for Queenslanders, and Maguire was proud of how his team was able to build a connection with the community.
“That’s probably the path they’ve taken, but what I’ve learned in that role is that the Origin team is about the people – it’s the people’s team,” he said.
“I definitely felt that given the huge importance of this role. Wherever you go in NSW, the support you get from the fans and the people and the passion they have for this team is just incredible.
“I see the team as a team of people, and our group is committed to taking everyone along on the journey.
“The fans came in droves for the first game and although we didn’t quite get the result we wanted, the effort from the boys was outstanding.
“They have imposed their will and we are doing it our way.
“That’s one thing we’ve really focused on in what we do. Ever since I was growing up, it’s always been about people and how we supported them.
“When you see how many young people are walking around in Blues jerseys now, you can see on the streets that the NSW jersey is still alive.”