Will Hopoate. Photo / Getty Images
NSW coach Ricky Stuart has put his faith in Manly teenager Will Hopoate to solve his centres crisis in a Blues side with five new faces for State of Origin II against Queensland.
The 19-year-old Sea Eagle, who announced last month he would take a break from football from next
year to do a two-year Mormon mission, was the shock inclusion in a revamped NSW side for the June 15 showdown.
Hopoate, who joins his father John as a Blues representative, replaces the injured Michael Jennings (ankle), despite having started just two games as a centre in a short NRL career spanning just 15 games.
Stuart again overlooked Canterbury giant Jamal Idris - a right-sided specialist - in favour of Hopoate, who had played most of his football at fullback and on the left wing.
Hopoate made his senior representative debut on the wing in last month's City-Country Origin clash in Albury.
"He's been playing a lot of left edge," Stuart said. "He handled City-Country very well for a young boy.
"We've had a lot of problems on the left edge ever since [Wests Tigers'] Chrissy Lawrence went down injured. A lot of our depth has been taken away from us.
"He's a young boy [Hopoate] who is an extremely talented, gifted footballer and it will be exciting for him.
"I've spoken to his coach [Des Hasler] and he has all the confidence in the world handling this opportunity."
Stuart had argued, in picking his side for Origin I, he had one eye on the future, but that appeared to have gone out the window with Hopoate, who wouldn't be available for selection for the next two seasons.
"I haven't spoken to him about that," Stuart said.
"It's not really my business to be concerned what he's doing with his religion.
"I've got to look at the immediate, and that's now."
Prop Jason King and utility Dean Young were dropped from the game one side, while Jennings, winger Brett Morris (hamstring) and prop Kade Snowden (back) were unavailable.
Hopoate joins winger Jarryd Hayne and benchmen Kurt Gidley, Anthony Watmough and Luke Lewis as the new faces, although that quartet have all played Origin before.
- AAP
