David EdwardsStorm Sees Maroon Red After Johnson Is Ruled Out Indefinitely
July 5th 2007 15:23
After an exciting State of Origin 3 match, where even many thought the dead rubber would be lifeless, has turned into one of the most exciting games this season, both before, during and after the siren.
Before the siren both camps were talking big. The NSW players were speaking under breath of mutiny, whilst the Maroons were promoting that they were aiming for an all-Queensland whitewash, thinking that they would be able to easily upset the Blues on their home patch.
The game itself was full of blood, brutality and above all the good ol’ fashioned bash. From the first tackle, when Maroon’s forward Dallas Johnson went down extremely hard after being hit, there was no doubt that this match would be an hard-fought game.
Whilst the Blues were able to hold out until the last ten minutes, where they were able to blowout the score and at least finish this year’s series with at least one victory, it was how Queensland played out the match that caused the most talk. The Maroons lost three of their best players (Johnson, Tate & Inglis) during the match, and beyond all thought they stayed competitive in the game. They had a number of tough players rise head and shoulders, but the biggest amount of surprise was the fact that after being knocked out in the first moments of the game, Dallas Johnson returned to the field in the second half to play a memorable period, including placing 26 tackles to limit the Blues mobility.
Whilst how The Maroon’s performed on the field earnt them praises straight afterwards, it seems that in hindsight that some teams are not the biggest fans on the amount of risks that Queensland took, especially in regards of allowing Johnson to return to the field. The Melbourne Storm have especially taken a hard shot at Queensland, as they now at an disadvantage after Johnson has been ruled out indefinitely to play due to the concussion he received in the opening plays.
Storm have criticised the Queensland side after they allowed Johnson to return to play despite his apparant dazed appearance. The Storm are positively angry that Johnson will now be unable to play for an yet to be determined amount of time after the doctors allowed an obviously concussed player back on a field in an match that essentially meant nothing.
Whilst the Storm have a solid case against the Maroons, what is even more unsettling is the injury toll that has been set up from the match. Brent Tate’s (Brisbane) season is now over after suffering an torn ACL, Brett Kimmorley (Cronulla) and Neville Costigan (Canberra) will sit out for at least four weeks with an torn MCL and broken hand respectively, whilst Melbourne will be hoping from the best as Greg Inglis and Dallas Johnson try to recover from their knee injury and concussion quickly.
What must be considered now is how much will each side push for glory in the State of Origin. Whilst there is no doubt that there is an great amoutn of honour placed on each player called up, they must consider there playing future at the same time. Injuries such as Tate’s are unfortunate, and whilst there is nothing that can be done from stopping the incident, it comes to an completely different case with Johnson. The player was obviously still hurting after the knock, and with the threat that a major injury that could threaten a life, not just a career, floating over any sporting code’s head, it is downright irresponsible to allow any player still feeling the effects to return.
In an normal match, there is no doubt that the player would have been sent straight to the hospital for checks and scans. Allowing him to return after just an half of playing, simply due to the fact that their bench was looking rather thin and tired, throws up a lot of controversy.
If the Queensland side are willing to risk player’s conditions such as Johnson’s, then we might be coming to an era where clubs simply will not allow players to represent their state for fear of injury. This is the start of the same dangerous path that the AFL followed with their national State of Origin series, which of course eliminated the competition. Both state’s must be able to place their best possible side, of course, but at the same time they must respect that these players have to return to their normal club side the following week, and there is no point in risking life and limb for a match which, in the end, was not even important to the series. If the State of Origin continue this trend, then we might be seeing a completely different style of play in the near future.
What To Watch For: Whilst the Wimbledon semi-finals, the NRL Rivalry between the Broncos and the Titans on Friday night are quite well the wait, this weekend should be the AFL and the return of a number of big players. On Friday night, Essendon will see the return of Adam Ramanauskas after recovering from a second cancer diagnosis, but of course the biggest news will be on Sunday where the West Coast Eagles will see their skipper, Chris Judd, return... with rumours still floating that league ‘bad boy’ Cousins will join him. Tune in on Saturday just to see potentially Ben’s long awaited return to the game.
Until next time, sports minds.
Before the siren both camps were talking big. The NSW players were speaking under breath of mutiny, whilst the Maroons were promoting that they were aiming for an all-Queensland whitewash, thinking that they would be able to easily upset the Blues on their home patch.
The game itself was full of blood, brutality and above all the good ol’ fashioned bash. From the first tackle, when Maroon’s forward Dallas Johnson went down extremely hard after being hit, there was no doubt that this match would be an hard-fought game.
Whilst the Blues were able to hold out until the last ten minutes, where they were able to blowout the score and at least finish this year’s series with at least one victory, it was how Queensland played out the match that caused the most talk. The Maroons lost three of their best players (Johnson, Tate & Inglis) during the match, and beyond all thought they stayed competitive in the game. They had a number of tough players rise head and shoulders, but the biggest amount of surprise was the fact that after being knocked out in the first moments of the game, Dallas Johnson returned to the field in the second half to play a memorable period, including placing 26 tackles to limit the Blues mobility.
Whilst how The Maroon’s performed on the field earnt them praises straight afterwards, it seems that in hindsight that some teams are not the biggest fans on the amount of risks that Queensland took, especially in regards of allowing Johnson to return to the field. The Melbourne Storm have especially taken a hard shot at Queensland, as they now at an disadvantage after Johnson has been ruled out indefinitely to play due to the concussion he received in the opening plays.
Storm have criticised the Queensland side after they allowed Johnson to return to play despite his apparant dazed appearance. The Storm are positively angry that Johnson will now be unable to play for an yet to be determined amount of time after the doctors allowed an obviously concussed player back on a field in an match that essentially meant nothing.
Whilst the Storm have a solid case against the Maroons, what is even more unsettling is the injury toll that has been set up from the match. Brent Tate’s (Brisbane) season is now over after suffering an torn ACL, Brett Kimmorley (Cronulla) and Neville Costigan (Canberra) will sit out for at least four weeks with an torn MCL and broken hand respectively, whilst Melbourne will be hoping from the best as Greg Inglis and Dallas Johnson try to recover from their knee injury and concussion quickly.
What must be considered now is how much will each side push for glory in the State of Origin. Whilst there is no doubt that there is an great amoutn of honour placed on each player called up, they must consider there playing future at the same time. Injuries such as Tate’s are unfortunate, and whilst there is nothing that can be done from stopping the incident, it comes to an completely different case with Johnson. The player was obviously still hurting after the knock, and with the threat that a major injury that could threaten a life, not just a career, floating over any sporting code’s head, it is downright irresponsible to allow any player still feeling the effects to return.
In an normal match, there is no doubt that the player would have been sent straight to the hospital for checks and scans. Allowing him to return after just an half of playing, simply due to the fact that their bench was looking rather thin and tired, throws up a lot of controversy.
If the Queensland side are willing to risk player’s conditions such as Johnson’s, then we might be coming to an era where clubs simply will not allow players to represent their state for fear of injury. This is the start of the same dangerous path that the AFL followed with their national State of Origin series, which of course eliminated the competition. Both state’s must be able to place their best possible side, of course, but at the same time they must respect that these players have to return to their normal club side the following week, and there is no point in risking life and limb for a match which, in the end, was not even important to the series. If the State of Origin continue this trend, then we might be seeing a completely different style of play in the near future.
What To Watch For: Whilst the Wimbledon semi-finals, the NRL Rivalry between the Broncos and the Titans on Friday night are quite well the wait, this weekend should be the AFL and the return of a number of big players. On Friday night, Essendon will see the return of Adam Ramanauskas after recovering from a second cancer diagnosis, but of course the biggest news will be on Sunday where the West Coast Eagles will see their skipper, Chris Judd, return... with rumours still floating that league ‘bad boy’ Cousins will join him. Tune in on Saturday just to see potentially Ben’s long awaited return to the game.
Until next time, sports minds.
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