Origin great Slater wins race to coach Maroons

3 years ago 350

By Simon Brunsdon and Brett Graham

State of Origin large Billy Slater has won the contention to manager Queensland from 2022, with confirmation he'll instrumentality complaint for the adjacent 2 years.

Slater replaces Paul Green successful the role, aft the erstwhile Cowboys premiership manager told the QRL helium was keen to prosecute a instrumentality to nine coaching, opting not to instrumentality up an enactment that would person fixed him a 2nd twelvemonth astatine the helm of the Maroons.

Green's Maroons mislaid 2-1 to NSW this twelvemonth successful a run that was astatine times considered a disaster.

They had mislaid the bid by the extremity of Game Two connected the backmost of 2 demoralising scorelines.

Slater, present 38, played 31 Origin games for Queensland and was an integral portion of the Maroons dominance from 2006 onwards.

"I consciousness precise honoured to person this relation enactment successful beforehand of me," Slater told TODAY.

"It comes with a batch of responsibility. But similar yourself, Karl, I grew up being inspired by this squad and past I got the accidental to go 1 of those players and present I get the accidental to assistance usher and signifier our existent and aboriginal Queenslanders to spell on."

Slater explained that helium wasn't disquieted by his deficiency of coaching experience.

"It's thing that I'm comfy with," helium said.

"I'm not teaching medicine. I'm not trying to physique a rocket oregon thing similar that. I'm coaching shot and it is what I cognize best. I person been progressive successful the crippled since I was a 4-year-old small boy.

"I person coached individuals and astatine the Melbourne Storm and besides wrong Queensland. No, I'm looking guardant to the challenge. I deliberation it is truly important for maine to bash it my way. Yes, we are going to assemble a beardown coaching unit astir maine but it is important that I spell successful determination and bash it my mode and not effort and beryllium idiosyncratic other that has been palmy oregon idiosyncratic other that has coached Queensland."

Incoming QRL main enforcement serviceman Rohan Sawyer said it was an casual determination to name Slater.

"Once we determined it was successful our champion interests to unafraid a manager who could supply enactment to a young playing radical implicit aggregate series, Billy was the basal retired option," Sawyer said.

"We're delighted to unafraid the services of specified a passionate Queenslander, and we're present precise overmuch looking guardant to readying for the aboriginal and providing arsenic overmuch enactment for Billy arsenic imaginable to assistance acceptable him up for success."

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