AUCKLAND Nines sensation Valentine Holmes is among a posse of next generation Maroons that Mal Meninga is watching with interest ahead of this year’s State of Origin series.

Already well and truly on Queensland’s radar, Cronulla young gun Holmes created headlines for himself at the Nines by calmly booting a field goal conversion from the sideline to send the final against South Sydney into extra time.

While the Rabbitohs eventually won the match, Holmes’ cool approach to getting the job done under pressure once again underlined his status as a Maroon-in-waiting.

Holmes was born in Townsville, and played for the Queensland under-18s in 2013, and has been a part of the Emerging Origin program.

Despite this, his New Zealand heritage made him eligible for the Kiwis and he faced a dilemma last year when he was named on both the Junior Kiwis and Junior Kangaroos squads.

Ultimately, the 19-year-old utility back pledged his allegiance to Australia, meaning he joins a list of the game’s hottest prospects striving towards playing Origin for Queensland.

Meninga said this year’s squad presented plenty of opportunities for young players, particularly in the backline after the retirement of Brent Tate and the unfortunate Achilles injury suffered by winger Darius Boyd.

While Meninga expects Boyd to play at some stage of this year’s Origin series, he said the window was open for someone to step up and force their way into the Maroons squad for Game I.

“I have spoken to Darius a bit since his injury, and the feeling I came away with was how positive and upbeat he was about the injury,” Meninga said.

“He knows he has the hard work ahead of him. It was bad luck what happened, but he hasn’t dwelt on it. He just said ‘well, it’s happened now this is what needs to be done’.

“His attitude to it all has showed how much Darius has developed in the last six to 12 months. I know how hard he works behind the scenes, Darius, so I have no doubt he will be back and pushing for Origin selection at some stage during the series.

“Hopefully he will only be missing for Game I, but certainly his injury and Brent’s retirement have stepped forward our plans for the regeneration of the side.”

Meninga said despite the loss of experience, the Maroons were still well-equipped to regain their crown lost to the Blues last year.

“We have guys like Will Chambers, who I thought was desperately unlucky not to have played for Australia in the Four Nations,” Meninga said. “I think Will had one of the best Origin debuts in recent memory, and certainly the form he carried into the back end of last season warranted a Test call-up.

“But I am sure his time will come.

“There are also guys like Dane Nielsen (Dragons) and Justin O’Neill (Cowboys) who have been in or around the team for a few years, and will be looking to press their claims with new opportunities at new clubs.

“But certainly from a Queensland perspective we are excited by some of the young prospects coming through as well. Valentine is absolutely one of the guys we will be watching this year to see if he can make the transition to a regular first grader of consistency and quality.

“Then we have guys like Dane Gagai, who was obviously in our thinking last year and has learnt a good lesson about his approach to the game.

“He has a perfect opportunity by being positive about the hand that was dealt to him.

“Then there is a guy like Dale Copley, who was ultra impressive last year, young Edrick Lee at Canberra who I am a big fan of and is a left winger to boot, who just needs a little more luck with injury.

“All of a sudden the situation doesn’t look so bad for us, does it?

“It is a really exciting time for these players and Queensland fans, watching how many of these guys will keep developing and take the next step towards becoming a part of the Maroons family.”