LeagueNews.co | Jess Malloy
Michael Maguire has been unveiled as the new coach of the Blues, and he has made it clear that he will be selecting players based on form, not reputation.
This tough stance could spell trouble for Blues legend and skipper James Tedesco, who will have to fight off challenges from other players to hold onto his fullback spot.
Maguire will be joined by a strong coaching team, including John Cartwright, Matt King, Brett White, and Frank Ponissi.
The former Wests Tigers coach's focus on form could mean a major overhaul of the selection process for the Blues moving forward.
Maguire stated, "I'm big on form.
The biggest thing I'll say to all the players is just to go out and play the best footy that you can play because that'll play a big part in where we go as a group.
When you've got people in really good form and they're coming into camp with a positive mindset about how they want to do things, I go after those players." He added, "I'm looking forward to just letting the players go out and play now.
I'll have discussions to be able to find ideas around what's going to best work for NSW and the squad, but I'm also going to say to them 'go out and enjoy yourselves and play your best footy', and when the time's right, we'll have to pick a team."