James Maloney’s name might be pencilled in for Laurie Daley’s NSW side, but Todd Carney made sure on Sunday he’ll keep an eraser close by for the next three weeks.
Maloney looked to have claimed favouritism with a starring effort in the Sydney Roosters’ Anzac Day victory over St George Illawarra.
But Carney, in his return from a foot injury, made a strong statement as to why the race for State of Origin’s sky blue No.6 jersey is far from over.
In a scrappy game, Carney somehow managed to shine – and only has his teammates to blame for failing to walk away with the victory.
Carney created two long-range first-half try opportunities which were butchered by teammates, and had another go begging when captain Paul Gallen couldn’t take a simple pass close to the line.
The incumbent Blues five-eighth didn’t shy away from the fact he isn’t ready to let go of his jersey either.
“It’s definitely a goal of mine still. I’ll be working hard to stay in that jumper,” Carney said after the match.
“… I played there last year – I want to play there.”
Carney praised Maloney’s hot form but said he knows what Daley wants from his playmakers, having worked under the rookie Blues mentor during his stint as Country coach.
“Jimmy’s name’s being tossed around for a reason. He’s playing some really good football,” Carney added.
“I’ve been coached by Loz before. I know what he expects and I’ve done a job for him before, in City-Country. Hopefully my name will be thereabouts.”
Despite instantly adding some spark to the Sharks’ lacklustre attack, there was only one thing running through Carney’s mind more than an hour after fulltime.
“I threw an intercept for (Sam Perrett’s second) try so that’s all that sticks in my head at the moment,” Carney said.
“I was happy with parts of my game … there’s a few things still a bit rusty. But it’s round seven and we’ve still got a long way to go.”