Ponga, Gagai bounce back into stride after Origin setback

Newcastle centre Dane Gagai described his conversation with Queensland coach Billy Slater last week as one of the most difficult of his rugby league career.

After 22 straight appearances for the Maroons stretching back to the final game of 2015, when Slater presented him with his first Queensland jersey, Gagai felt crushed when told he was not being selected for the State of Origin series-opener in Adelaide on Wednesday night.

The 32-year-old Maroons stalwart then had an even tougher chat with his seven-year-old son, Dante, to explain why they will be at home together in Newcastle watching the first game on television.

“That was probably one of the toughest phone calls, but at the end of the day, Queensland’s always going to pick what team they think’s going to be the best to do the job and they’ll always have my full support,” Gagai said.

“I think for me, the hardest part was telling my son.

“That was probably the toughest part for me but once the initial sting of it wore off, then it was on to the next job and that was focusing on this week and preparing well to get the win for Newcastle, and we managed to do that.”

Though Dante was born in Newcastle, Gagai played the father-son card and described him as a “Queenslander through and through”.

“It will be awesome watching it with him,” he said.

I’ll have a barbecue at home, and Queensland’s got my full support.

Newcastle Knights centre Dane Gagai

Without going into specific detail of his conversation with Slater, he said they had developed a strong bond since Slater’s season-ending shoulder injury suffered in  the 2015 series gave Gagai the chance to make his Origin debut.

Gagai believed his form for the Knights this season, especially defensively, had been enough for him to retain his place in the Queensland back-line.

He knew his sub-par performance against Connor Tracey in Newcastle’s 26-6 loss to the Sharks on the eve of Origin selection could harm his chances, but he is determined to keep playing well enough for the Knights to keep himself in the conversation around the selection table for Origin II and III.

Gagai ran 21 times for 165 metres and made 12 tackles in the win against Manly, and he wants to continue that high work rate when the Knights, who have a bye next weekend, return to action against the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium on June 10.

“If Queensland need me, they need me,” he said. “But like I’ve always said going in, I’ll wait until that phone call comes to be selected, and if I’m not in that team, my focus is here with Newcastle and doing my best for this team.

“If you’re playing good footy here, then you’ll earn your way into that team, and that’s what it’s about – earning that jersey. I wish all the boys all the best, because I’m still a Queenslander and I still want the boys to win.”

Like Gagai, Kalyn Ponga was not required for Origin duty in Adelaide on Wednesday night, but his focus remains with the Knights and playing games every week after spending the majority of the past 10 months looking on from the sidelines recovering from multiple concussions.

“I just want to win games here … I need to play footy,” Ponga said.

“I haven’t played too much this year, I’ve had a tough couple of months, to be honest, with the head knock and everything that’s been going on.

“So for me, I just want to play good footy here – that’s my main priority and I’ve always said that – and off the back of that, hopefully, things will come, but I can’t worry about that.

“We had a good conversation, I respect Billy’s decision, and I support Queensland," Ponga added. “I’m excited to see how the boys go on Wednesday. I know I’m not there, but we had a good chat and I respected his decision, and like I said, I just want them to win.”

Back in his regular position at fullback, Ponga recovered from a shaky start – throwing an intercept that led to Manly’s first try then conceding a penalty goal from a miscued line drop-out – to lead several Newcastle attacking raids down the Sea Eagles’ right edge.

He also bounced back to his feet after a couple of heavy hits, one of which led to a 10-minute sin-bin stint for Manly centre Tolutau Koula in the 65th minute.

“I did cop a couple of hits but they were fine. I think I’ve said it a couple of times now, I’ve had enough [knocks] and I wouldn’t stay on the field knowing if I wasn’t right.

“They were just hits, and I didn’t feel concussed or anything like that.”

Knights coach Adam O’Brien was pleased with how both players responded to the disappointment of being left out of the Queensland side, at training last week, then on the field against Manly.

“I want them to play Origin,” O’Brien said.

“The players want to play rep footy, and I’d never hold them back for that, but I’m a human being too, and if they don’t pick them, then I’m glad they’re out there for us, certainly.

“That, for me, naturally they’re going to be disappointed, but that was Monday, we had review that day of the Sharks game, then when we trained Tuesday, they were the best trainers out on the field, and that’s a really good sign for us moving forward.”