Brendan Cowell has called for Jack Wighton to be the first choice five-eighth for New South Wales, after Wighton was forced to play centre in last year’s Origin series despite winning the Dally M Medal.
In a roundtable discussion for NSW’s Origin halves combination, Joel Caine believed Jerome Luai would be best served to support his Penrith teammate Nathan Cleary at halfback.
But Cowell questioned the lack of discussion around Jack Wighton, wondering why the Dally M Medal winner is never considered for five-eighth.
“I mean he wins the Dally M at (number) six, you think, ‘okay you’re the best player in the league last year and you play five-eighth,’ so why do you not get to play five-eighth?” Cowell said on NRL's Crunch Time.
“You’ve got Cleary doing his thing (and) he’s on fire.
“Jack’s a tough, physical, big number six and I think it would work, that combination would work."
Wighton has also won a Clive Churchill medal in the five-eighth position, after his performance against the Sydney Roosters in the 2019 Grand Final.
Bryan Fletcher discussed whether New South Wales was a “bit light on” in the centres, which forces Wighton to play centre as a result.
But Cowell disagreed with the depth of centre options for NSW this year.
“You’ve got Lattrel Mitchell, you’ve got Zac Lomax, Crichton, Bradman Best.
“I think we’ve got heaps of centres this year.”
State of Origin returns to the middle of the season this year and will kick off on June 9 at the MCG.