NSW halfback Nathan Cleary has leaped to the defence of Latrell Mitchell after the South Sydney star was one of two players who declined to conduct interviews at the Blues’ open media day.

In a major break from the precedent set by ex-NSW coach Brad Fittler, Mitchell and Sydney Roosters prop Spencer Leniu were off limits on Monday after the Blues assembled in camp in Sydney.

Fittler insisted no player was given special treatment, and lived by the mantra that if players couldn’t handle questions from the press pack then they wouldn’t be able to deal with the rigours of State of Origin.

The Fittler approach was largely embraced by Michael Maguire for last year’s series, despite the ex-Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers coach having had his fair share of challenges with the press.

Latrell Mitchell. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

But that open access approach appears to have fallen by the wayside under returning Blues coach Laurie Daley, with Mitchell and Leniu unavailable to discuss NSW’s fortunes ahead of the May 28 series opener in Brisbane. 

“At the end of the day, all of us as NSW fans and players, we want Latrell to be at his best come Wednesday night,” Cleary said. 

“If that’s what he needs to do, that’s what he needs to do.”

Blues forward Angus Crichton added: “If that’s what helps him be at his best then I’m all for it. 

“He (Mitchell) has probably had enough stories written about him and good and bad, and I think if that’s how he sees himself playing his best footy then I’m all for it.”

Mitchell has been on a self-imposed media ban since being photographed with white powder in a hotel room in Dubbo last year. 

Even in games where he has been captain or where he has produced match-winning plays for the Rabbitohs, the 27-year-old has been off limits and Souths have sent other players to accompany coach Wayne Bennett at their post-match press conferences.

The NSWRL said Mitchell’s media ban was a matter for the NRL, which oversees the game’s media guidelines, and South Sydney. 

Mitchell sat alone in the NSWRL gym scrolling through his phone while most of his teammates conducted interviews on Monday. 

Leniu, meanwhile, kept a similarly low profile.

The Roosters prop has not spoken publicly since his heated run-in with Queensland legend turned Nine Network commentator Johnathan Thurston, who is part of Billy Slater’s Maroons coaching staff.

Leniu unloaded on Thurston last month following a Roosters’ win over Brisbane.

The Samoan international is believed to have taken issue with comments Thurston made when Leniu was suspended for racially abusing Broncos playmaker Ezra Mam last season.

Luai accepts responsibility for Origin axing

A disappointed Jarome Luai says he needs to “be a man” about his NSW State of Origin axing, owning the fact he is still finding his best football at Wests Tigers.

Luai became the unlucky half to be squeezed out of NSW’s squad on Sunday night, with coach Laurie Daley preferring to partner Mitch Moses with Nathan Cleary.

The Tigers recruit has been part of the Blues’ past four series, dropped once for the dead rubber in 2023 before winning his spot back last year.

He and Moses were crucial in NSW overturning a 1-0 series deficit last season, but Cleary’s return to the Blues team always meant a squeeze was coming.

Luai took a call from Laurie Daley as he walked up the tunnel following the Tigers’ loss to South Sydney on Sunday night.

“He just said, ‘I’m going to leave you out of game one, and stay ready’,” Luai said.

“Which I will be. I am going to use this time to refresh. We have the bye now. Refresh, reset and just keep working on my game. 

“I heard what I needed to hear. And I am content with it because I know I am in control of the selection at the end of the day. 

“I am still figuring out what my best is here so I am looking forward to that process and I have a bit of work to do on my game.”

Luai’s case for selection in the Blues’ team was a strong one, given he is a left-footed left side player, unlike Moses and Cleary who play on the right.

Jarome Luai passes. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

He has more than a decade of experience playing alongside Cleary, with their partnership dating back to juniors at Penrith and including four NRL premierships.

But the 28-year-old refused to say he had been hard done by.

“Not at all,” Luai said.

“I am in control of the selection at the end of the day. Looking at my form and the way I have been playing, I know I can be better. 

“It is just about owning that now and moving forward. At the end of the day, just be a man about it all.

“I am disappointed because I know what I am missing out on. And I think if I wasn’t (disappointed) I would probably be scared.”

Tigers coach Benji Marshall conceded after Sunday’s game the club felt responsible for Luai not being picked, after his move from the Panthers. “But it’s a decision that is out of our hands,” Marshall said. 

“I wish we could do more to get him into that team. But it will make him hungrier and better.”

Tigers prop Terrell May also missed out, despite the possibility of the Blues losing big-minute prop Payne Haas to a quad injury. May has been among the NRL’s best front-rowers this year, but attracted criticism last week for comments on social media telling a fan to throw a Blues jersey in the bin.

“All I can say for Terrell and his character and the way he has been for us, and that’s outstanding,” Marshall said. “He has taken a lot of the young guys under his wing. He has become a real leader in our squad.”

Ref dumped over knock-on blunder

Referee Peter Gough is set to pay the price for missing a blatant knock-on during the Dolphins’ loss to the Warriors on Saturday.

Warriors winger Roger Tuivasa-Sheck coughed up a bomb which clearly travelled forwards as it spewed sideways across the field but after a teammate regained possession, Gough ruled play on to the chagrin of the Dolphins.

They could not challenge the call as there was no stoppage in play and the Warriors scored a crucial try a few plays later to establish a 10-0 lead in what turned out to be a 16-12 victory.

Gough will be left off the list of referees for the shortened Round 12 fixtures due to Origin.

“I’m not allowed to talk about referee decisions, everyone has  seen what happened,” Dolphins coach Kristian Woolf said.

Maguire set to overhaul Broncos line-up

Brisbane coach Michael Maguire will mull over whether his faltering side need a personnel overhaul after a fifth loss from six games.

The 30-26 defeat to St George Illawarra on Sunday was a poor display by a side that is making a habit of starting well and then falling off a cliff.

The Broncos led 12-0 against the Dragons at Suncorp Stadium but couldn’t get the job done. They even conceded two tries when the opposition was down to 12 men.

Prop Ben Te Kura and hooker Blake Mozer, both 21, are yet to play an NRL match in 2025 and have been plying their craft in the Queensland Cup for Souths Logan.

Te Kura, who impressed in the pre-season trials after playing three NRL games in 2024, had missed just three tackles in his opening seven matches for the Magpies.

Mozer earned a contract extension earlier in the year until the end of 2027 but has not been given an opportunity.

Maguire was asked whether he would give the duo a chance in round 13 away against Manly after the club’s upcoming bye.

“I’ll assess where we’re at now that we’re at a bye,” Maguire said.

“It gives me a good look at where we are all at. We’ll look at everything.”

Ezra Mam. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Maguire has persisted with players who aren’t performing and both Te Kura and Mozer are highly rated. The positions of bench hooker Cory Paix and bench prop Fletcher Baker would likely be most under scrutiny if the young guns were given a chance.

The Broncos have been outscored 98-38 in the past six weeks in second halves after dominating or holding their own in most of their first half displays . It explains why Maguire referred to his side as a “Jekyll and Hyde” outfit.

Good, bad and ugly all rolled into one.

“We show such great stuff and then go the other way,” Maguire said.

“When we find the consistency and what we’re capable of doing, we know what we can do.

“But … we all need to really have a good look at second-half starts and things like that. We have got to be better at that.”

Captain Adam Reynolds summed up his side’s woes perfectly. “We were good in patches, poor in patches. It’s just about trying to find that consistency,” Reynolds said.

“It’s just concentration. We’re just not getting it right at the moment. There’s little areas in the game where we’re just not good enough. We’re not sticking to the game plan, coming up with some poor errors and ill-discipline, and when you do that you invite teams into it. They get a bit of a sniff and they’re hard to contain. We need to be better consistently.”

That’s just not good enough from a Broncos side that was tipped to challenge for the title at the start of the year. They are now in ninth on 10 competition points, just two points ahead of last-placed Gold Coast.

with AAP