Gal: Don't let 'ruthless' Freddy fool you

Former NSW Blues captain PAUL GALLEN will feature on Nine's LIVE AND EXCLUSIVE coverage of the State of Origin series opener, from 7pm AEDT on Wednesday!

The Maroons keep on talking about that Queensland spirit.

It was there in 1995, when that team of nobodies beat a pretty star-studded NSW team 3-0. I'll give them that.

But since then, we haven't really seen it.

That period of dominance Queensland had was built on brilliant individual players who became a great team. They had probably three future Immortals in that side, in Cameron Smith, Johnathan Thurston and Billy Slater; and that's not counting blokes like Greg Inglis and Darren Lockyer.

Now, the Maroons are without those legends, they're missing some players and have picked 17 rookies in their 27-man squad. Let's see if the Queensland spirit helps them.

Obviously I'm one-eyed - but I can't see anything other than a NSW win in the State of Origin series opener.

The only thing that can beat the Blues is complacency and with Brad Fittler at the helm, I don't think that will be an issue. I think they will prepare as hard as usual and come game night, they'll be primed and ready to go.

Freddy handles the NSW coaching job well. I think he's pretty ruthless, to be honest.

Perhaps with the kookiness, with how friendly and nice Freddy is, a lot of people don't see past that to the incredible competitor inside.

I compare Freddy to a Cameron Smith-type leader. He commands respect. When he speaks, people listen, because of his standing in the game.

Cameron Smith is ruthless. So is Freddy. He was as a player, as a captain, and now he is as a coach.

Having played Test footy under Cameron, he demanded what he wanted and when he didn't get it, he wasn't happy.

I think Freddy is the same. I was coached by him only once, in a City-Country game, and I certainly found that.

When you're in meetings, whether it's video analysis or one of Freddy's breathing techniques, when he spoke, everyone listened. You wouldn't want to be the person whose phone went off, because there'd be a blow-up. You wouldn't want to talk while he's talking. No one got out of line.

Everyone's got that respect for him. That's what Freddy brings. Don't let the kookiness fool you. Freddy is a ruthless winner who wants NSW to beat Queensland and he'll do everything in his power to make that happen.

I expect no complacency at all from the Blues, and that's bad news for the Maroons.

NSW are deserved favourites and that tag won't bother them at all. The Queenslanders are the ones who like being the underdogs - somehow they were underdogs in most of the series they won during the eight in a row! Don't ask me how.

None of that will matter to Freddy and the Blues. They will be ready come Wednesday night in Adelaide.

MIDDLE BATTLE QUEENSLAND'S ONLY HOPE

Queensland will still be dangerous. I don't think game one will be a hammering, by any stretch of the imagination.

Any side with a middle like Josh Papalii and Christian Welch, their starting props, is formidable. Then there's big Tino Fa'asuamaleaui at lock, a fantastic young player on debut. The middle is where NSW have to be strong to ensure there's no upset.

You look at the Blues front-row of Daniel Saifiti and Junior Paulo. It's Paulo's first game and Saifiti was probably a bit of a shock selection last year in game two.

If the Blues can limit Queensland's go-forward, it will limit the amount of space that their backs get. And the Maroons backs ... on paper at least, there's just no comparison.

Cameron Munster can pull something out of the bag. Daly Cherry-Evans had a tough year at Manly.

In the NSW halves, Nathan Cleary was terrific all season and voted by his peers as the RLPA Players' Champion. Until his last couple of games, Luke Keary was arguably the form player of the comp.

Throw James Tedesco on top of that, Jack Wighton as the Dally M Player of the Year, then the likes of Josh Addo-Carr, the Blues backs can cause far more damage than Queensland's.

But again, the game needs to be won in the middle first. Saifiti, Paulo and Jake Trbojevic really need to stand up for NSW.

Papalii is an outstanding player and Welch is so underrated for mine. It says something when a guy can be winning premierships and Origin selection and he still feels underrated.

You know what you're going to get from Welch: 150 metres every week, he's not going to miss a tackle, he can offload and pass the ball. He may not have that stand-out body frame, like a Papalii or a Paulo, but he's such a good player. So is young Tino.

That's why I'm not tipping a runaway victory for the Blues. Those Maroons middle forwards can keep them in it. There's a big responsibility on Saifiti and Paulo, while Trbojevic has been there and done it plenty of times; hopefully he can lead the way with his quality and experience.

Payne Haas will also be a factor in the middle, coming off the bench, and I have no doubt that he'll be better in his second crack at Origin.

He would have been training really hard in the last five weeks, after Brisbane won the wooden spoon. He couldn't have done more in a poor team this season and he'd have been training his backside off after being given another chance in Origin.

He's a really good player, on two fronts. On top of the exceptional talent, you know what you're going to get from him: big minutes, if need be, big metres and solid defence. He's probably got to work on a bit more ball-play in his game, but that's a job for the off-season. What he can already offer this NSW team is great.

It will be a big battle, no doubt, in Origin I.

But I'm confidently tipping a NSW win - hopefully on the way to winning the series 3-0.

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Magpies' brutal call on young star stuns AFL great

Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes has taken aim at the Magpies over their treatment of young star Jaidyn Stephenson amid reports the club is looking to offload the forward.

This month's trade period is set to keep Collingwood on their toes with a number of stars linked to exits as the club looks to re-sign Darcy Moore and Jordan De Goey following the monster deal given to Brodie Grundy last summer.

Midfielder Adam Treloar has headlined the list of potential exists, while it's understood the club is also willing to let go of Tom Phillips and Mason Cox should rival teams come knocking.

But after AFL reporter Damian Barrett revealed Stephenson, who still has multiple years left on his current deal, could also be on his way out, many have been left confused on what exactly the club is looking to do.

Essendon great Matthew Lloyd said the club's decision to move 21-year-old Stephenson didn't "surprise" him and hoped the news would serve as a "wake-up call" for the 2018 Rising Star winner.

"It didn't surprise me that his name has come up for trade because I just think that the game does work you out a little bit," Lloyd told AFL Trade Radio.

"When he gets space out of the goal square he's a very good AFL footballer because they can't handle his speed but with any physical contact or players in front of him, what else can he do to win himself some football?

"It could be a good wake-up call for him as well.

"Jaidyn's got to take a good look at himself in a lot of aspects and maybe Collingwood are just giving him a wake-up call that he needs."

Stephenson finding his name on the trade table also came as a surprise to many after he kicked 38 goals in a stunning debut season and was a key contributor to the Magpies side that made the 2018 AFL Grand Final.

Despite admitting that Stephenson's form had dipped having been in and out of the side this year, Cornes said he was confused with the club's decision to move him on.

"I get a little bit frustrated by it," Cornes added.

"I thought his body language and his performance was poor, but this happens to young players in the game sometimes. I think we can expect too much from players.

"I don't know how well Jaidyn prepares himself off the field and what sort of professional he is … does he do everything to be the best possible player that he can be?

"But at the end of the day, he's 21 years of age, he kicked 38 goals in his first season as an 18-year-old, he kicked 24 goals from 14 games last year with some distractions off the field and he had a poor year this year."

Kornes, a two-time All-Australian and premiership player with the Power, couldn't understand why one poor season from a 21-year-old was a good enough reason to shop the young star around.

"One poor year out of three as a young player is quite common," he said.

"So the first sign of any weakness in his game Collingwood are like, 'Hang on, we're done, we're out of here. We're done with you Jaidyn, we're not going to dig in, we're not going to develop your game, we're not going to work on areas that are deficient. We're not going to lay down the law of what we expect off the field to get the best out of you. We can't be bothered doing that, we're trading you.'

"It frustrates me a little bit and what are you going to get in the draft for a pick with Jaidyn Stephenson that's better or has more potential than Jaidyn Stephenson?"

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Gattuso reveals James Bond actor Connery asked him not to leave Rangers

The Italian had starred in Scotland as a player and admits the iconic actor personally pleaded with him to stay

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Mourinho takes swipe at Madrid after Bale scores Tottenham winner

The Spurs manager couldn't help but make a cheeky comment about his Wales star, who was often criticised for his performances in Spain

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Javon Wims gives C.J. Gardner-Johnson a two-piece special with no fries

Chicago wide receiver Javon Wims was ejected today after randomly hitting a Saints player in the face… twice.

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Millman claims maiden ATP title at Astana Open

Australian John Millman has taken down Frenchman Adrian Mannarino at the Astana Open to claim his first ever ATP title.

Fourth seed Millman on Sunday held up his first piece of silverware in Nur-Sultan following a straights sets victory, 7-5, 6-1.

It was a third time lucky for the world No.45 who had lost to Novak Djokovic last year in Tokyo and Marco Cecchinato in 2018 at the Hungarian Open in his only two previous finals matches.

But for Mannarino, today's result extended his grim finals record to nine losses from 10 ATP title matches.

"It is incredible. I am so happy and relieved," Millman told ATP website.

"I just feel very satisfied. It is just a pure moment of satisfaction.

"That was my third final - third time lucky I guess.

"These things aren't easy to win and to do so at a place where I felt so comfortable all week, in terms of the hospitality, makes it really special.

"To win the inaugural Astana Open is special. I am so happy. It has been a big team effort and I am pumped."

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Why this driver was distraught after cruel F1 'mistake'

Williams driver George Russell has lamented the "stupid mistake" that cost him the first Formula One points finish of his career at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

Russell, regarded by many as a future star and widely expected to one day replace either Lewis Hamilton or Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes, has been learning his trade since the start of 2019 with the Williams team. Last

year's car was by far the slowest on the grid, and while this year's car is an improvement, it's still a struggle for Russell to record a decent result.

And so, when the Englishman was running 10th behind the safety car with 10 laps of this morning's race remaining, it seemed as though he was in the box seat to finally get off the mark and score his first points.

That was before the mistake that he says he'll "never forget."

Weaving from side to side to keep the heat in his tyres, Russell lost control and hit the wall, ending his race on the spot.

A visibly upset Russell was spotted sitting on the grass beside the track, head in his hands, as he contemplated what had been thrown away.

Speaking after the race, Russell was asked what he needed to do to finally finish in the points.

"I don't know. Not make stupid mistakes like I did today," he replied.

"It was a race that I was pushing as hard as I could from lap one until then, the most aggressive I've ever been. And I wanted to continue that under the safety car because I knew that with the guys behind me on the hot new tyres, myself on the old tyres, if I had any chance of getting a point, I needed to be super aggressive.

"And obviously, as soon as I lost the car, I was already in the wall, and it's just gutting. Obviously really sorry to all the guys."

The 22-year-old later posted to Instagram: "I'll never forget this day, this mistake. I'll learn from it, be stronger for it. I'm so sorry to the whole team. No excuses."

That drew a response from Lewis Hamilton, with the sport's most successful driver replying: "George, you were giving it your all. It's OK to make mistakes and it's OK to feel the pain. I've made more than I can remember. You're great bud."

Russell's performances have caught the eye of former world champion Fernando Alonso, who will return to the sport in 2021, replacing Daniel Ricciardo at Renault.

"I think there are very talented drivers now in Formula One," Alonso told Sky Sports on the weekend.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHDfW-SBvx6/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp

"George Russell is the one that surprises me every weekend. How he's driving the Williams. Zero mistakes. I'm really surprised about his natural speed.

"So, if I have to say one name, Russell for the future is going to be my pick."

Having often dragged the Williams into places it doesn't deserve to be, Russell has earned a reputation as one of the best qualifiers in the sport. In the 34 races he's contested, he's never been out-qualified by his teammate.

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