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Townsend's Blues squad: Which Kiwi makes their Origin debut?
SEN • April 30th, 2026 12:50 pm
The men’s State of Origin series is now less than a month away from getting underway.
With that in mind, Chad Townsend has named the New South Wales side he'd select for Game I at this stage.
Following Laurie Daley’s return as coach in 2025, the Blues were unable to defend their crown with the Maroons pulling off an upset with a 2-1 series win.
Unlike last year, NSW and Queensland can select players who represent England and New Zealand and meet the previous eligibility rules which has widen the selection pool.
This now means that the likes of Victor Radley, Casey McLean and Addin Fonua-Blake can now represent the Blues.
And Townsend believes that Daley will be making the most of those changes when it comes to filling the void left by Payne Haas, following his MCL injury, ruling him out for the opener.
But there is still one position that the 2016 Premiership winner still can't decide on just yet.
See Townsend’s full team below.
Chad Townsend’s Game I side
- James Tedesco / Dylan Edwards (Sydney Roosters/Penrith Panthers)
- Brian To’o (Penrith Panthers)
- Stephen Crichton (Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs)
- Latrell Mitchell (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
- Mark Nawaqanitawase (Sydney Roosters)
- Mitchell Moses (Parramatta Eels)
- Nathan Cleary (Penrith Panthers)
- Addin Fonua-Blake (Cronulla Sharks)
- Reece Robson (Sydney Roosters)
- Isaah Yeo (Penrith Panthers)
- Hudson Young (Canberra Raiders)
- Angus Crichton (Sydney Roosters)
- Cameron Murray (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
- Jacob Preston (Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs)
- Jackson Ford (NZ Warriors)
- Mitch Barnett (NZ Warriors)
- Spencer Leniu (Sydney Roosters)
- Blayke Brailey (Cronulla Sharks)
Game I takes place on May 27 at Accor Stadium in Sydney, with SEN having live coverage of all three matches.
SEN League will also have commentary for Game I of the women’s State of Origin available on our radio network and on the SEN app, which begins on April 30 from 6pm AEST with NRL Countdown.
LISTEN TO CHAD'S EXPLANATION BELOW
