NSW have thumped Queensland 34-10 in State of Origin two setting up an intriguing final in Brisbane. Video / NRL / Sky Sport
Queensland coach Wayne Bennett took aim at newspaper headlines for causing the fight that lead to Tino Fa'asuamaleaui and Payne Haas being sin binned State of Origin II on Wednesday night.
The Blues claimed a 34-10 victory over the Maroons to send the series to a decider but tempers flared in the 56th minute when Fa'asuamaleaui and Haas were ordered to cool down for 10 minutes each after throwing punches.
The Courier Mail's back page pointed to the pair's bad blood dating back to an Under-18's State of Origin match three years ago, where the pair threw down.
Courier Mail back page.
The story said Fa'asuamaleaui "verbally goaded Haas, challenging NSW's biggest forward to run directly at him" in the duel. When Haas ran across the field, the Queensland forward unloaded sledges.
"Tino went hunting for Haas that night at Homebush and he sat him on his a**e," Fa'asuamaleaui's manager Simon Mammino said.
"Payne was the big dog at schoolboy level so Tino took him on — that's the competitor he is."
While there is bad blood between the pair, Bennett blamed the story for pushing emotions over the edge.
"I'd be concerned, it's not what we want," Bennett said. "I've worked with you guys (journalists) for a long period of time so I know you'll take no responsibility for it but that was a headline in Brisbane today, and wherever it came from, it was a headline in the paper, I didn't read it all.
"They're young men, they're 20 years of age, both of them and headlines like that throw fuel onto the fire.
"I knew deep down there would be a blue here tonight between the pair of them and you won't take responsibility for it but if that's not a headline today, I don't think that's going to happen tonight."
Daly Cherry-Evans looked like he took aim at Fa'asuamaleaui post-game but said you have to "back your players".
Tino Fa'asuamaleaui of the Maroons and Payne Haas of the Blues scuffle during game two of the 2020 State of Origin series. Photo / Getty
A journalist went back to Bennett to clarify that he was blaming a newspaper headline and the Maroons coach doubled down.
"They both would have read the paper today and it stirs the emotion in them," he said. "That's my point. They've got to be responsible for their actions and I accept that as well, but you're talking about 20-year-olds here.
"That fight didn't come out of nowhere tonight, it was brewing this morning and I don't know about the background as well. It's easier to criticise them and they have to take responsibility for it but it's the type of headline that young men just don't handle and they didn't handle it well, either of them."
Bennett didn't speak to Fa'asuamaleaui about the article before the game and said he "hoped it would blow over".
But The Daily Telegraph's Paul Kent was having none of it.
"Just ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous, Wayne is kidding himself," he said on Fox League's post-match broadcast. "This is a rivalry between these two kids who are 20-years-old. Wayne started to go the right way, they're young men, they get carried away.
"The fact is it goes back to when they were schoolboys. They didn't read something in the paper to realise they don't like the other bloke. To suggest that they've read this story today …
"We continually get told from within camp that, 'I didn't see the story, I don't read the papers'. That's half the problem with Origin, you've got to go around and find these stories outside of what's going on between the teams because no one talks anymore.
"So (journalist) Peter Badel's gone and found this story about these two guys who since schoolboys haven't liked each other and have always gone after each other. To suggest this is the reason for this, it's ridiculous."
NRL great Michael Ennis said Fa'asuamaleaui making a beeline for Haas "suggests there's some history there, that these two don't like each other and that there's a feud there".
Kent continued: "When there's a bit of history between blokes — Benny Elias and Steve Walters, Paul Harragon and Mark Carroll always went for each other when they played club football.
"You go back to the Greg Dowling and Blocker Roach days, they found each other. That happens, that's why Origin was good. That's why we celebrated it.
"He's kidding himself. Wayne's the number one supporter of this. He just doesn't like the media now so he wants to get it off his chest. He's kidding himself.
"We finally have a story that's not about someone's sick grandmother. It's not bad for the game."
Storm and Roosters champion Cooper Cronk added he thought Bennett was playing the "coaching card 101".
"The headlines will be this for the next couple of days," Cronk said. "And his side's just conceded six tries. For me, he's got more issues than headlines causing problems."
