Ethan Strange puts his standout State of Origin debut down to one thing: his main selection rival.
The 21-year-old five-eighth provided the spark for NSW to overcome Queensland 22-20 in the series opener last Wednesday, thrusting him into conversations about whether he should become the starting No. 6 for game two at the MCG on June 17.
Strange was only parachuted into the starting line-up after first-choice five-eighth Mitchell Moses picked up a hamstring niggle in camp.
But regardless of the outside talk, Canberra's playmaker credits Moses and halfback Nathan Cleary for helping him have a debut to remember.
"Moey (Moses) and Nathan are massive. Whenever I ask questions, they are always there to help me out, and they've got such smart football brains, so they never make it feel like it's a burden when I'm asking," Strange said.
