Origin relation are at their worst: Parker

(attention eds: note language in 11th)

By Scott Bailey

SYDNEY, July 18 AAP – State of Origin relations are at their all-time worst, according to retiring Queenslander Corey Parker.

As the war of words continues from last Wednesday’s Origin III post-match presentation snub by NSW, Parker laid the blame solely on the Blues for the current ill-feelings between the two sides.

“Absolutely. Yeah, I do,” said Parker when asked by Sky Sports Radio if he thought there was more bad blood than ever between the team.

“There’s a thing called sportsmanship and I think that’s what aggravated most Queenslanders through that game.

“I do feel there’s that real bad blood … between the two teams.”

The 34-year-old said he expected the fall out from the match to be used as motivation for the Queenslanders next year.

He also then denied claims that the post-match snub had been brought about following excessive sledging of the Blues, and particularly Gallen, in his last game.

“That’s an opinion from him, I never heard any from where I was and I didn’t throw any either,” Parker said.

Parker was within a group of players identified by Gallen as being one of the chief sledging perpetrators following Queensland’s 26-16 Origin II victory over the Blues.

The retiring Blues captain hit out at Parker, Johnathan Thurston and Matt Gillett on Friday night for the manner in which they celebrated in the face of NSW players on fulltime at Suncorp Stadium last month.

“You talk about disrespect, you’ve only got to look back in Game II and the end of that game Johnathan Thurston looks directly at me and says `F… your Blues’,” Gallen told Triple M.

“You see four or five players go off at Andrew Fifita and Aaron Woods … It’s like there are two sets of rules.”

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