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Sport Nation
NSW expecting Queensland ambush towards Blues enforcer
Charles Goodsir • May 28th, 2025 12:24 pm
The Daily Telegraph’s David Riccio has revealed that the NSW camp are expecting a Queensland ambush directed at Blues enforcer Spencer Leniu.
Leniu generated headlines at Suncorp Stadium earlier in the 2025 season when he was playing for the Sydney Roosters against the Brisbane Broncos. When coming off the ground, Leniu engaged in a war of words with Channel 9 commentator and Queensland legend Johnathan Thurston.
On the Tuesday ahead of Game I, The Courier Mail ran with the back page headline ‘Smash this Blues Grub’ directed at Leniu and branded him as Queensland’s “public enemy number one”.
“The media plays a massive role in the build-up to a State of Origin series,” Riccio told SEN 1170 Breakfast.
“That headline hasn’t gone down overly well from a NSW point of view.
“As far as knowing what’s coming, there’s a real sense in the Blues camp that for all the hush build up to this Origin, it could all blow up in this powder keg moment.
“Josh Hannay, assistant coach of the Queensland Maroons, spoke about the altercation with Johnathan Thurston and said it wasn’t brought up in Maroons camp.
“However, I’m certainly aware that a couple of Queensland Origin players have marked that down against Spencer Leniu’s name.
“I’d find it surprising if a ferocious moment didn’t happen around Spencer Leniu.”
SEN’s Greg Alexander hopes that Leniu doesn’t let his emotions boil over and concentrates on the job at hand.
“I don’t want to see Spencer Leniu have the red mist completely take over,” Alexander added.
“You want a bit of it but you don’t want him throwing the ball away.
“I want him to keep his head.”
Andrew Voss responded: “I disagree. I’m the opposite.
“I want to see things spill over.”
Leniu has been named on the bench for NSW in Game I which takes place tonight (Wednesday) from 8:05pm AEST at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.
