'Players are nervous': Tedesco fears Origin will be played differently

Roosters captain James Tedesco admits players are nervous in the lead-up to State of Origin on June 9 with the recent head contact crackdown weighing heavily on their minds.

NSW coach Brad Fittler will name his side for the series opener on Sunday night but is sweating on players not being cited or injured in round 12 before confirming his team.

Blues hopefuls Angus Crichton and Victor Radley are fighting to have their names cleared for separate charges from last weekend for charges that could see them ruled out of contention if judiciary results don't go their way.

Tedesco said he understood the reasoning behind the tightening of the rules but added the Origin series could be played in a different way in 2021.

"I think a lot of players are nervous, they don't want to make any [head] contact," Tedesco said on Tuesday morning.

"It's for the consistency, if they're doing it in the NRL they'll do it in Origin I guess.

"That could be a different game in Origin. Momentum could swing very quickly if something like that did happen. We'll just have to see what happens.

"A lot of the times it's accidental and there's no malice in it, but you just can't do it, you can't make contact with the head because it's getting punished very severely at the moment.

"There's more awareness of being more controlled. I don't think it's about changing techniques, it's about being aware."

Tedesco has been on the receiving end of foul play in recent weeks, most notably from Parramatta's Marata Niukore, who received a two-match ban for high contact on the No.1 during the Roosters' loss to the Eels in round nine.

Despite being on the receiving end of the tackle, Tedesco's running technique was mentioned as a possible factor for recent incidents involving him.

"I've always run like that, I do get myself in awkward positions," he said.

"I know fans get frustrated and I get a few sprays. But that's just how I run. I guess there's more awareness for me to stay up straight because [if] I run low and I lose my footing. 

"It's more on me, if I get hit in the head then that's worse for me, so I don't want to have that. It's beneficial for me not to get hit like that, it's more just about keeping my feet.

"I see the benefits for players, I see the crackdown is beneficial for player's safety, I'm just not sure on the punishments and how severe they can be.

"The sin bins and cracking down on contact with the head, but sin bins every game and then making the game faster and injuries more common, so there's a fine line there."

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