Blues coaching legend Phil Gould believes the Maroons will ask plenty of questions in Wednesday night’s decider—but a newcomer must avoid overplaying his defensive hand or it may open the door for New South Wales to take the series.
Speaking on the Six Tackles with Gus podcast, Gould praised Queensland coach Billy Slater for his bold selections throughout the 2025 series.
“I applaud Billy Slater, it would have been so easy for a young coach to think ‘we won Game II, we got it right, let’s just stick and go into Game III with the same side’,” Gould said.
“But I was convinced when I left the ground (Optus Stadium in Perth) if they go into Game III with the same side they can’t win, they can’t beat New South Wales.”
MORE: Young Blues forward prepares to tackle his Raiders ‘Papa’
“When you looked at the game in the cold light of day, New South Wales blew that game,” Gould continued.
“But that’s what Queensland do, they are great underdogs, they find a way to make New South Wales nervous and they’ve been doing it for 40 years.
“Queensland will give New South Wales enough excuses to lose, they will come up with questions for NSW to answer, I have no doubt about that.”
Asked about the Maroons’ left-field selections of the retired Josh Papali’i and 27-year-old debutant Gehamat Shibasaki for the Game III decider, Gould wasn’t surprised but he did offer words of caution.
“To go out and get someone like like Gehamat Shibasaki, that doesn’t shock me any more,” he said.
“Stephen Crichton has been a bit of a monster when he has got the ball in Games I and II, and they just want a bigger body on him I think—Gehamat is primarily there for that reason, to handle Stephen Crichton.
“He’s a big body, he’s a strong lad, he’s in good form, he’s a Queenslander and this is all he’s ever wanted to do.
“But if his sole focus is getting in front of Crichton, then I think there’s an avenue there for New South Wales to exploit, it could open the way for some other options and I’m sure the Blues are exploring that.”