On a painful night for Maroons, this was their biggest disappointment
The most disappointing thing about Queensland this series was the performances of Reece Walsh.
What has happened to their No.1 in the space of just two months?
Walsh was illegally flattened by Joseph Suaalii in the opening game. He looked short of a run and almost low on confidence in a forgettable performance in Melbourne.
And his effort on Wednesday night was a far cry from the player who terrorised the Blues last year.
Walsh’s most embarrassing moment came when Mitchell Moses stood him up to score the clinching try late in the second half.
This time last year, some questioned whether Kalyn Ponga would ever win back his fullback spot from Walsh. Now, the debate is more when, rather than if, Ponga will return to the No.1 jersey.
The Blues kept Reece Walsh quiet throughout game three.Credit: Getty Images
The Blues deserved credit for their physical approach with Walsh. On more than one occasion, Walsh stayed down in back play after being crunched in a tackle – grabbing at a foot, or a shoulder, then later clutching at his lower back.
Maroons coach Billy Slater said: “He was certainly getting hit a fair bit without the footy.”
Skipper Daly Cherry-Evans told this masthead about Walsh: “Reece can’t win us a game by himself, and he certainly didn’t lose the game by himself.
“He’ll learn a lot from this series. I’m 35 and I’ll learn a lot from this series. There is a lot of love and support for Reece.
“As a young fella coming through, the reality is you need to find different ways to beat oppositions when they start to zero in on you. I know he’s got the work ethic and desire to come up with [ways to do that].”
Mitchell Moses rounded Walsh with ease to score the clinching try.Credit: Getty Images
One of the few times Walsh did find himself in open space, he was quickly mowed down by Moses. Zac Lomax waited for him to play the ball, then easily shoved him into touch.
Queensland needed Walsh to light it up at the back and he didn’t. He was regarded as the man who posed the biggest threat to NSW before the series started. So what happened?
The Broncos will be sweating on their fullback rediscovering his form – and quickly – as they try to keep their own NRL finals hopes alive.
The biggest cheer of the night came at 9.27pm when Ponga was finally injected into the action.
There were plenty of questions about how Slater would utilise the Knights captain. Phil Gould asked the day before the game whether Slater would be brave enough to substitute Walsh and play Ponga at fullback.
Ponga, however, also found it difficult to have an impact on the result, despite giving the home side a brief lift in energy.
The Maroons were brilliant defensively. Both teams were. Daly Cherry-Evans and Tom Dearden made more than their share of tackles.
Both teams needed their attacking men – and Walsh and Ponga were nowhere to be seen.
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