Dragons skipper Ben Hunt admits he's sought extensive counsel from Harry Grant despite having nudged the Melbourne rake out of a starting role for Wednesday's State of Origin opener.
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Hunt was always expected to be named in the Maroons side for game one given his demonstrated utility value, but new coach Billy Slater pulled something of a surprise in handing him the No. 9.
He's also promised to play "no games" with his line-up, confirming Hunt will start as named, with Grant to be injected from the bench in the No. 14.
How much time he spends at dummy-half remains to be seen, but Hunt is expecting Grant to play plenty of minutes in game one.
"I think we'e both going to be playing a fair bit of footy come Wednesday night," Hunt said.
"We've had a few chats, we probably haven't spoken much about the interchange. We talk about different things we can offer on the field and how the game can play out.
"I've been chewing on his ear to be honest. He's been playing some excellent footy down there for Melbourne so I'm trying to get some tips off him.
"Billy hasn't told us exactly how it's going to pan out but I'm pretty sure he's got a big role [in mind] for Harry. He's in excellent form for his club so he's going to be out there a fair bit.
"At the moment my main focus is starting that game off [well], getting my defence right, and getting my service right to the forwards."
Hunt and Grant have had the benefit of all-time great Cameron Smith's ear this camp, with Slater having brought in the pillar of the famed Maroons dynasty into the fold.
Smith wore the No. 9 on a staggering 42 occasions, with Hunt saying the future Immortal has shared plenty of wisdom in the lead-up to the series opener.
"He just brings a wealth of knowledge Smithy, [as do] all the coaches really," Hunt said.
"Their attention to detail with everything has been through the roof. It's something I probably haven't seen as much in Origin camp.
"Obviously Smithy knows a lot about the game so he's got some good pointers for all the boys out there.
"I won't go into it all, but he just comes up to you and says tiny little things you don't even think about. Once he mentions it you go 'oh, that makes sense'.
"He just notices so many little things at training he can help you with. He's got into me and Harry about backing our running game.
"You get a lot of fast play-the-balls in Origin but, when you do, you need to take advantage of them. He's really encouraging us to do that."
How they handle the dummy-half double-act could prove the difference in a match where the spines have rarely been so evenly matched on paper.
"It's definitely important for [the spine] to play well," Hunt said.
"The forwards obviously need to set that platform for you but it's up to the spine to take control and get the job done.
"There's plenty of strike all through that that spine, right from Kayln at the back to myself and Harry coming off the bench.
"Munster's probably in career-best form, Chez is playing great footy, so there's plenty for us to offer right across the park."
There's no questioning Hunt's personal form coming in, the 32-year-old having sat atop the Dally M leaderboard when voting went behind closed doors last weekend.
"It's pretty good, it's a massive surprise," Hunt said.
"It's a good thing that I'm personally coming in with some good form and feeling pretty good about my footy, but I'm not really thinking about it too much.
"I just want to play well for the Maroons at the moment."
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