Mitchell Moses could be dropped from the State of Origin following serious injury.
The Parramatta Eels halfback suffered a fractured foot in Rd 3 and has been sidelined ever since.
Fox League’s James Hooper, however, revealed new Blues coach Maguire is open to picking Moses without a club game behind him.
Maguire is faced with a halves crisis after Nathan Cleary was ruled out of the entire series with a hamstring injury while Nicho Hynes is also yet to return.
“I’ve heard he wants Mitchell Moses to be in the side even if he doesn’t come back and get a game leading into Origin, which I have got to say surprises me,” Hooper said on NRL360 on Wednesday.
“But Madge will back himself. But I have heard without a game he likes Mitchell Moses and he sees Moses as the next best No.7 with Cleary unavailable.
“I’m sure Madge has spoken to Moses and I wouldn’t be surprised if he has even said, I don’t mind if you don’t have a club game.”
News of the move left the NRL360 panel stunned with both Braith Anasta and James Graham raising concerns.
“With an injury like that, you don’t even know how it will go until you get out there and put it under first grade intensity physicality,” Anasta said.
“You don’t even know. It normally takes a few weeks.”
“Those return to play protocols and tests that the physios and medical staff will put you under it is a box ticking exercise,” Graham added.
“But you know that first set when you are out there and you know if the medical staff have missed something or you know if you are sweet as well and it is a fine line.”
Hooper then shed light on an apparent setback Moses suffered in his bid to return to play.
“Then he’s gone and run on the Saturday morning and got through a pretty rigorous fitness testing regime.
“And whatever happened, it can’t have been overly positive because off the back of that, then the narrative switched to hold on, actually, now he might not be playing, and now he might not be playing against Souths the week after either.”
With Moses sidelined the Eels have plummeted down the NRL ladder, languishing in 13th place and leaving facing increased pressure.
“They are torn,” Hooper said.
“They are like, we want our players playing rep footy, but we also need him.”
The Daily Telegraph’s Dean Ritchie then questioned whether the Eels would be resistant to Moses’ selection.
“If you were Paramatta, would you be saying, hang on, we’ve just missed you for seven weeks? We’re three from nine. We’re down the bottom,” Ritchie said.
“You’re going to go play Origin, which means you’ve got weeks off, you come back from Origin physically and emotionally wrecked.