Kiwi Fern Otesa Pule is set to make her first Origin start, becoming the first New Zealand player to do so under the changed eligibility rules for the interstate rivalry.
Pule moved to Queensland before her 13th birthday, making her eligible to represent the Maroons after a recent rule changeallowing New Zealand and England internationals to be selected to play.
New Zealand teammate Brianna Clark, who was born in Queensland, will start on the bench after her name was missing from the team list in the first match of the 2026 women’s series.
New South Wales took the win in that match 11-6, but Pule entered the contest early and scored the Maroons’ only try after teammate Makenzie Weale hit her head on the turf on the first run of the match.
Medical procedures are in place for Weale, which have ruled her out for the game on May 14 and allowed Pule to make the starting team in the front row.
The 22-year-old Kiwi Fern put in a strong performance overall during her 50 minutes on the pitch, making 30 tackles, four tackle breaks and running for 106m.
Kiwi Fern Otesa Pule (left) will start for Queensland in their second 2026 Women's Origin game, while international teammate Brianna Clark is named on the bench. Photos / Photosport
Clark now has the opportunity to step on to the pitch in a Maroons jumper for the first time since 2021, when she was named as interchange player and Queensland won 8-6.
She then decided to represent the Kiwi Ferns, qualifying for the team via her mother, which made her ineligible to be picked by the Maroons until this year.
The rule change around Origin has also impacted the men’s game, with Newcastle Knights captain Kalyn Ponga pledging allegiance to the Kiwis before this year’s Rugby League World Cup.
Ponga, whose parents and grandparents are all from New Zealand, said he was “immensely proud” of his Māori heritage and his heart lay across the Tasman despite being born in Western Australia and growing up in Queensland.
The International Rugby League Board approved his application to switch eligibility in March.
