How is Matterson not in the NSW team

[pawsandclaws1]

I'd rather he not be there as we need him and that's a purely selfish point of view.

 

[TieDye]

@pawsandclaws1 dude why on earth would we want him missing all that time and playing origin, as much as I love the blues, 🐯boys 1st

 

[WeHaveCheeKam]

Matto is going really well , lightyears our best player, but i wouldn't say hes absolutely demanded selection (although no backrower has demanded selection).

His defence has been great but he could probably look to add more with his attack.

 

[kiwitiger]

Not worried...let's be honest state of origin is the most over hyped thing since The Voice aussie on channel9. Let him play the real stuff and not three token games. Even the coaches in this have no success in the nrl.

 

[Tigerlily]

Matterson and Gutherson have both been added to NSW Squad.

 

[Matto]

@Tigerlily where did u find that please?

 

[Tigerlily]

@Tigerlily where did u find that please?

On the official NRL web site under late mail.👍

 

[earl]

@WeHaveCheeKam Matterson is a solid backrower with some extra skills namely his ball playing and kicking game. He isn't though the most dynamic runner of the footy.

I get him not getting picked however I would have picked him.

 

[tiger_one]

Poor Matterson is the Claytons player - in the team (but not really).

 

[jirskyr]

@jirskyr
Does it matter?

Oh it's just weird to pick a guy as 18th man, call up 3 other forwards but keep him at 18th man. Exactly what is the purpose of the 18th man then?

If Angus Crichton had gone down in the warm up in Game 1, Matto would have played. It does not follow that you keep him as the top reserve but shuffle the primary team.

 

[happy_tiger]

Are we all 100 % sure that Matterson was fit ??

 

[Matto]

@happy_tiger 💯

 

[Spud_Murphy]

@hsvjones Yeh i definitely thought he would replace Haas....plus, he was 18th man and someone got injured which means he comes in.....y isn't he playing?!?! It's rigged

It's not the first time a player named 18th man for the first game hasn't been elevated to the team for the second game when there have been changes made. Don't ask me who it was or when, I just remember it happening and me thinking it was odd at the time because I assumed he would've been next in line.

I think coaches choose their back up players purely to give them the experience of being in an Origin camp with a view to them playing in the future. Barring the highly unlikely event of an injury to one of the top 17 in camp, I don't think they really have any intention of using those guys in the immediate series. They will usually bring in players that have been there, done that when the series is in the balance, rather than promoting 18th or 19th man, as we have seen with the selections of Graham, Turbo & Ferguson - Saifiti being the exception in this instance - that one was an odd selection.

 

[bigsiro]

@jirskyr
Agree with you, it's weird!
Which is exactly why I asked "does it matter?" - I was referring to your comment of "we don’t know who the new 18th man is?"
As it follows from Freddy's harebrained selection changes that it hardly matters who the new 18th man is...