James Tedesco called out after horror New South Wales Origin showing

New South Wales captain James Tedesco may have once held the mantle as best fullback in the game, but fans have reacted with astonishment after his poor showing for the Blues loss on Wednesday night. The Maroons showed why heart and grit is embedded in their jersey having scored two tries with 12 men to win Origin Game I 26-18 in Adelaide on Wednesday night.

The Blues dominated the first half but were disjointed and clunky and couldn't capitalise on field position or possession. And after a dubious sin-bin against Thomas Flegler, it appeared the Blues would carry the momentum to the final whistle.

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But tries to Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Cameron Munster when Queensland were down a man showcased their never-give-up attitude. And the spotlight after the disastrous loss, with Game II at Suncorp, saw the attention turn on the Blues players.

And one man who has come under the spotlight is captain Tedesco. The Roosters fullback was picked on loyalty and reputation this year, rather than form, having struggled in 2023. But it is hard to argue against his selection after all he has done in the Sky Blue and Kangaroos jerseys.

Tedesco has been a brilliant Blues captain and one of the game's greats, but the omnipresent fullback appears to have loss a yard of pace and his cutting edge this year. And his form carried over to Origin.

Two telling moments involved Maroons tries. The first saw Selwyn Cobbo shrug Tedesco off with ease after a lacklustre tackle to stop a try. And the defining moment was when Tabuai-Fidow left Tedesco eating dirt to all but seal the game for the Maroons.

Tedesco has been a brilliant Blues veteran for many years and will most certainly be picked in Game II to show he still has claim to being one of the game's premier fullbacks. But if he doesn't perform at Suncorp and the Blues lose the series before returning home, could Tedesco be fighting for his spot?

Regardless, fans reacted with venom on Wednesday night after Origin and called for Brad Fittler to shuffle the spine to try and take the series to a decider.

Maroons dig deep in State of Origin game I

The Maroons had to overcome plenty of adversity with Tom Gilbert (shoulder) and Cobbo (hip) unable to finish the game, while David Fifita, Murray Taulagi (both head injury assessment) and Tom Flegler (sin-bin) had to spend time out of the game.

But their grit and fight - personified by man-of-the-match Reuben Cotter - helped them take a 1-0 lead in the series on Wednesday night. Coach Billy Slater was thrilled with his team having called for calm at half-time.

"This is an almighty win, people in Queensland will be very proud of their team," Slater said. "We put ourselves in a position (to win) because I know that that's a trait of Queensland.

"I'm sure NSW is the same… but Queensland goes through drought, cyclones, flood, they go through a lot of adversity and we try and represent our people in that way as well. "I think that's what makes our people so proud of this footy team and that's why this footy team is such an inspiration for our people."

With Game II at their Suncorp Stadium fortress on June 21, the Maroons will be confident that they can hold onto the shield.

with AAP

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