The 2010 State of Origin NSW team will go down in history as being one of the least impressive and under-performing squads in Origin history.
Despite all of the pre-season hype about the strength and danger the Blues would bring to Origin this year, once the series opener arrived the boys in Blue quickly lost their confidence as they toppled to a fifth-straight series loss to the mighty Maroons.
New South Wales have been famous for their aggressive tactics in recent years, and they brought much of the same to the field this season. It was their tough approach that saw them stop a Queensland whitewash in game three the year before, and one of the reasons why they were the odds-on favourites to win the first game through SportsBet.
But despite their obvious prowess and punishing plays, they lacked cohesion on the field and looked confused in the face of the tight and terrifying Queenslanders.
The 2010 State of Origin was likely the last a number of the Blues players would appear in, with talks of veteran Brett Kimmorley and game three captain Trent Barrett finishing up their rep careers.
There was plenty of controversy surrounding the New South Wales State of Origin team in 2010, especially for the all important second game when Timana Tahu walked out of the squad after racist comments from the then-assistant coach Andrew Johns.
Just three players appeared in all three State of Origin games for the Blues in 2010 – winger Brett Morris, hooker Michael Ennis, and interchange Tom Learoyd-Lahrs – as injury, suspension and selection debates saw a mixture of players come in and out to represent New South Wales for the year.
Below is a list of the players that made up the New South Wales squads for the three 2010 Harvey Norman State of Origin showdowns. The captain for games one and two was Kurt Gidley, replaced for the third match with Trent Barrett, and they were coached by Craig Bellamy.
| Jersey # | Position | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fullback | Kurt Gidley (c) | Jarryd Hayne | Jarryd Hayne |
| 2 | Right Wing | Brett Morris | Brett Morris | Brett Morris |
| 3 | Right Centre | Matt Cooper | Matt Cooper | Michael Jennings |
| 4 | Left Centre | Timana Tahu | Beau Scott | Beau Scott |
| 5 | Left Wing | Jarryd Hayne | Joel Monaghan | Michael Gordon |
| 6 | Five-eighth | Jamie Lyon | Trent Barrett (vc) | Trent Barrett (c) |
| 7 | Halfback | Brett Kimmorley | Mitchell Pearce | Mitchell Pearce |
| 8 | Prop | Michael Weyman | Michael Weyman | Jason King |
| 9 | Hooker | Michael Ennis | Michael Ennis | Michael Ennis |
| 10 | Prop | Josh Perry | Brett White | Kade Snowden |
| 11 | Second Row | Trent Waterhouse | Trent Waterhouse | Luke Lewis |
| 12 | Second Row | Ben Creagh | Ben Creagh | Paul Gallen |
| 13 | Lock | Anthony Watmough | Paul Gallen | Greg Bird |
| 14 | Interchange | Jamal Idris | Kurt Gidley | Kurt Gidley |
| 15 | Interchange | Tom Learoyd-Lahrs | Nathan Hindmarsh | Tom Learoyd-Lahrs |
| 16 | Interchange | Luke Lewis | Tom Learoyd-Lahrs | Tim Mannah |
| 17 | Interchange | Brett White | Luke O’Donnell | Anthony Watmough |
