In the year 2525...

Close your eyes. Forget everything you know about the NRL and State of Origin. Now open them again and consider the Brisbane Broncos, who have won six in a row, being denied the use of their six best players and losing 28-10 to a Warriors outfit that lost four of their previous five. We know it's ridiculous but the really insane thing is that we have an answer, and we're employing it next year! One weekend Origin, with New Zealand playing England and other internationals, will eventually become three. The Kiwis and the English will get a full mid-season Test series. The ratings for the other games on the rep weekend underlined how much more attractive these Tests are – even to a parochial Australian audience – than depleted clubs schlepping around. But we're still sucking on that money teat, evolving at a glacial pace… bloody frustrating.

Gallen's Valentine is a shepherd

It was the play that won the evening for Cronulla on Saturday but captain Paul Gallen says there might have been a bit of gamesmanship involved. First, the long-serving NSW skipper managed to drive the ball out of the in-goal and a couple of tackles later, Gerard Beale raced away to tie the game. "I think I might have got a bit of a shepherd off Val," Gallen told ABC radio, in reference to teammate Valentine Holmes. "That's how I managed to get out." Another Herculean Gallen run set up the decisive Chad Townsend field goal. Still on winger Holmes, coach Shane Flanagan said there was some schadenfreude involved in him dealing with his Origin I omission. "The non-selection of Billy Slater eased the pain for him a little bit," said Flanagan. "If he doesn't get selected … I know Val really looks up to Billy. Val will get on with it."