One up, one down: Moses firms to play as McLean drops out

Despite being unable to train with the rest of the squad throughout the week, Mitchell Moses was back on the paddock today in Gosford for an opposed session against the NSW Under 19s and is “very confident” that he’ll take the field at the MCG according to his teammates.

Front- rower Mitchell Barnett highlighted that an injury cloud is nothing new for the Eels captain.

“In my first camp he came in under an injury cloud and did really well. He’s
pretty honest, and he’s very confident he’s playing," Barnett said.

Hooker Reece Robson was also confident in Moses' fitness for Wednesday night.

“He’s definitely tracking along well. Just talking to Mitch, he’s confident he’ll be right.”

One man who won't be there is centre Casey McLean, who suffered a quad strain on Saturday and has been ruled out.

With Stephen Crichton already sidelined by a shoulder injury, McLean had been promoted to the starting side in just his second Origin match but that dream has turned into a nightmare.

Tolu Koula will now move to the centres with Mark Nawaqanitawase promoted to make his debut on the wing and Dolphins winger Jack Bostock joining the bench as the replacement player.

After being a late withdrawal from the series opener in Sydney and training in a reduced capacity earlier in the week, Moses’ time with the rest of the spine has been limited.

Robson says preparation time doesn’t concern the Blues’ playmaking ranks though.

“We’ve played a lot of footy in the past which helps, we don’t need much (time together) at all. A lot of it comes down to the reps you get on the field, and we’ve all played a lot of games alongside Mitch, so he slots in well," he said.

The NSW Blues aren’t putting all their eggs in one basket though.

“We’ve got contingency either way. Whatever happens, we’ll be alright,” said Robson. “We had a lot more reps with (Moses) than we did with Ethan coming into game one, and we saw the job he did. He came in a day or two before and did his thing, we just slotted in around it.”

After a stellar Origin debut in the five-eighth role, Strange is one of many young
guns who have been impressing their teammates, including debutant Dylan Lucas.

“He brought a lot to the side in Game One. We’ve all seen how good he’s been, so for him to get his opportunity off the back of a couple of great games for club is exciting," Robson said.

"We’ve all got full confidence in him and the player he is, and that he’ll go out and get the job done on Wednesday night."