Jake Clifford missed out on Queensland selection, but the talk that he was in the frame for a Maroons audition lit a fire in the North Queensland playmaker. The 28-year-old responded with one of the best NRL games of his career at Magic Round, then headed into Sunday’s clash with South Sydney in Townsville with the attention still following him.
Clifford won the night in a display of pure class, collecting six Dally M points after moving from five-eighth to halfback because Tom Dearden was injured. It was his 100th career match, and he handled the switch with the poise of a player who knew the pressure had shifted onto him.
Before Magic Round, Clifford’s name had been in the headlines alongside Sydney Roosters star Sam Walker as selectors weighed up an Origin audition. Last week, Walker was picked for the Maroons and Clifford was not. But the Cowboys halfback did not let that become the story. Instead, he produced a performance that showed why he had been part of the conversation at all.
Clifford said there had been “a bit of noise” around the selection talk and that it was exciting to have his name in the frame. He said he was happy to get his job done, and that with Dearden out he had to take ownership of the game and of his kicking. That is exactly what he did. North Queensland needed control, and Clifford supplied it.
The numbers backed up the eye test. He had nine try assists in 11 games this year, a tackle efficiency of 90.9 per cent and an average of 83 metres in attack, all signs of a season building toward something bigger. Billy Slater has made clear he looks for good habits over a long period before he picks players, and Clifford’s strongest argument may be that his form has been sustained rather than fleeting.
Clifford was generous in defeat to the man who got the nod over him. He said Walker is such a skilful footy player that he keeps you on your toes because you never quite know what he will do, and he felt the Cowboys handled him well. That mattered on a weekend when the origin debate around both players became impossible to ignore.
The missed call for Queensland has not dimmed Clifford’s ambition. He said playing Origin would be a dream come true and something he thought about as a child watching the series. If the chance comes, he said he would be over the moon. For now, though, his focus is narrower and more practical: he wants to play good footy for the Cowboys and set them up for a good year.
That mission still has real weight. North Queensland were just outside the top four as they prepared to face the Rabbitohs without co-captain Reuben Cotter, while Jason Taumalolo was due back after being rested against the Roosters. Clifford’s form has given the Cowboys a chance to stay in the hunt, and Sunday in Townsville offered another chance to keep that push alive.
On Wednesday night in Sydney, Walker was set to run out in the No.7 jersey for the series opener. Clifford said he would be supporting him from afar. The Origin door is not closed on Clifford, but the better truth is simpler: he has done the one thing he could control, and it has put his name back where it belongs.
