With Ben Hunt set to miss the first State of Origin match of the series, the Maroons’ No. 14 jersey is up for grabs, and it’s being reported a left-field option is being considered.
FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer >
North Queensland’s Tom Dearden is the red-hot favourite to be the Maroons’ bench utility for Game I, but coach Billy Slater also loves what the versatile Kurt Mann brings.
Mann has been so important for the ladder-leading Bulldogs this season and according to Code Sports, the Winton product is firmly on Slater’s radar.
IMAGINE WHAT YOU COULD BE BUYING INSTEAD. Set a deposit limit. For Free and confidential support call 1800 858 858 or visit gamblinghelponline.org.au.
“The fact that Billy Slater is considering Kurt Mann as a utility option on his Maroons bench … Kurt is such a valuable utility for the Dogs and they have a huge opinion of him,” Dave Riccio said on NRL360.
“That bench spot for the Maroons, that No. 14 is suddenly a bit more open.”
Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo endorsed the likeable Mann for a Maroons spot, pointing to the fact he does all the effort areas in the game well.
“If Queensland selectors are looking at Kurt, I can understand why,” Ciraldo told Code Sports.
“He’s such a valuable contributor to our team with the way he plays for his teammates. He’s such a selfless character.
“Another thing I know is that it’s always been his ambition to represent his state, so passion for the jumper certainly won’t be an issue.”
MORE NRL NEWS
HOOPS: Crystal ball on Galvin’s future call is getting clearer … this is when it’ll happen
ELITE: He cost them a bomb, but Fogarty officially signs with Manly after tug of war
‘STATEMENT’: How Cronk would have handled Mam’s return differently to Broncos
RD 11 TEAMS ANALYSIS: Broncos’ huge Mam call as Cowboys swing the axe
Mann has been picked in the Maroons squad before but has never featured in an Origin game.
While it is unlikely, there’s a chance that Mann also comes into the side at some stage in the series for veteran Daly Cherry-Evans if the halfback’s form continues to be subpar as Riccio explained.
“If there is a dip in DCE’s form (and Dearden gets picked halfback), they have a ready-made utility in Kurt Mann,” he said.
Mann isn’t the only potential uncapped Maroon who is in the running for a spot in Slater’s 17 with Titans edge forward Beau Fermor also knocking on the door.
Fermor’s form on the glitter strip has been so good this season that it’s kept David Fifita out of his preferred left edge spot.
The prospect of Dearden, Fermor and potentially even Mann on the same bench will mean a pretty small group on the pine, but could that be the direction Slater goes in to try and win back series?
“It’s a pretty small bench … small, mobile, fast feet through the middle, that’s the belief I understand,” Riccio said.
