Sam Thaiday believes Daly Cherry-Evans has a golden opportunity to position himself among the great captains of the Maroons if he can lead his team to victory in the Origin decision.
With Cameron Munster on the sidelines of COVID-19 for the important third game, the pressure is on Cherry-Evans to lead by example.
The 33-year-old made his debut with Origin in the second game of the 2013 series, arriving from the bench in front of a local crowd at Suncorp Stadium. Since then he has made 18 appearances, 11 as a captain.
“He was a quiet kid when he first came in and just wanted to learn,” Thaiday told QLDER of Wide World of Sports.
“I’ve seen him grow and change for many, many years now and I think this is probably one of the biggest tests he’s done with a home state jersey, standing at Suncorp Stadium to wear the your team to victory.
“I think he has these traits of a great captain in him.
“He’s a different character, he’s a little weird, but we all need a little weird in us.”
Andrew Johns said that despite Queensland’s midfield talent, he wouldn’t be in the mix for the Kangaroos selection at the moment.
“Let’s say there was a test match, hypothetically in a fortnight, the backbone, the most important positions; obviously (James) Tedesco would be the winger and probably the captain, Munster would be five eighths if he is fit, the midfielder I think it’s probably Nathan (Cleary).) who deserves to be number 7 in an Australian shirt, ”he said.
Compared to legendary Queensland captains like Cameron Smith and Wally Lewis, Darren Lockyer said the debate over Cherry-Evans ’representative career focuses on Origin’s success.
“I think it’s very articulate and that’s not always the rugby league,” Lockyer said.
“He’s struggling there a lot, and if we’re able to win on Wednesday, that elevates him to a higher status.”