This is an article from last year by Peter Badel, The Sunday Telegraph.
Queensland coach Mal Meninga believes Greg Inglis will terrorise NSW, with stats showing the South Sydney ace is better than injured Test fullback Billy Slater.
Ahead of the State of Origin decider at Suncorp Stadium this Wednesday night, statistics have been unearthed which show Inglis has outperformed Slater in a number of key categories since his shift to fullback.
While Slater's withdrawal with a knee injury is a blow for the Maroons, his absence gives Inglis the room to use his 106kg frame from the back in the decider.
Rabbitohs coach Michael Maguire produced a masterstroke by moving Inglis from centre to fullback in round three and Meninga is relishing the prospect of giving him a free rein instead of having him stationed exclusively on Queensland's left side.
The Blues have every reason to be fearful of an Inglis rampage on Wednesday night.
According to Fox Sports Stats, the 25-year-old is averaging the most tackle busts and line-breaks of all the fullbacks in the NRL this season.
Compared to Slater and Queensland's other fullback options Matt Bowen and Ben Barba, Inglis has made more metres per game, more tackle busts, more line breaks, less errors and has yet to give away a penalty in 2012.
Inglis is already the greatest tryscorer in Origin history - he has 14 from just 17 games - and Meninga is prepared to tailor Queensland's attacking structures to ensure his new fullback propels the Maroons to a seventh consecutive series victory.
"I'm excited about what Greg can do at fullback," Meninga said.
"Playing both sides of the park, Greg is a great rugby league player and I still maintain fullback is probably his best position.
"When you talk about getting involved and getting more touches, this gives Greg that opportunity.
"As we saw against the Broncos (when Inglis twice hammered rival fullback Josh Hoffman a fortnight ago), his defensive ability was pretty good, too.
"You can't replace people like Billy, that is a given.
"He brings so much energy, he is all over the place and his talk is fantastic. You can't replace the things he does, but we have to meet the standards at which he plays.
"We have to engage Greg and make sure his best plays are utilised for the team."
Inglis's statistical output from the backfield is compelling evidence of his successful switch to fullback.
He averages 144 running metres per game in the NRL this season, compared to Slater's 133 for Melbourne.
The Test centre has more tackle busts than Slater (75 to 57) from one less game, more line breaks (15 to 14), and while the Storm fullback has made 18 errors from 12 games, Inglis has just eight from 11.
Slater has also conceded eight penalties from the back, while Inglis has a clean sheet.
But the Maroons and Test custodian's potency is undisputed: Slater has more tries (11 to 7) and more try assists (12 to 7) than Inglis.
Inglis said he plans to seek Slater's advice when he arrives in camp with the Maroons on Tuesday, admitting he cannot match Slater's footwork and anticipation.
"I will get in contact with Bill," Inglis said.
"It is a bit shattering for us to lose Billy, but in the end we had so many good selections to pick from.
"I'm excited, I think this game will open up. A few years ago me and Karmichael (Hunt) did a swap, (at fullback), but this time I'm there for 80 minutes, not 10 minutes here or there."
Former Maroons skipper Darren Lockyer backed Meninga's decision to shift Inglis to fullback.
"Losing Billy is a huge blow, but Greg has been in great form for Souths and the position really suits his game," Lockyer said.
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