NSW five-eighth Mitchell Moses has declared “I’m ready to go” as he looks to take his place in the Blues side after a frustrating hamstring injury kept him sidelined for a month.

Moses will finally play his second match with Nathan Cleary in the halves after a false start just 48 hours before the Origin opener when the Eels star suffered the first hamstring injury of his career in camp.

He was ruled out the following day with Ethan Strange coming in and starring on his NSW debut, but coach Laurie Daley put his trust in Moses and named him to start in Melbourne on Wednesday.

Moses hasn’t played a game since the Eels lost to Melbourne on May 16, and while he didn’t complete all the sessions last week, he’s declared himself a certain starter as the Blues look to clinch the series at the MCG.

“I think you (the media) have been talking about it a lot more,” Moses said on Monday.

“I fully understand (why it’s been the biggest focus) because there’s no hiding from it, but I’m confident in myself that I can go out there and do a good job.

“I’m confident in myself that I’ve put the work in and I’m in a good position at the moment to be able to perform on Wednesday night.”

The injury to his left hamstring won’t affect his kicking leg, with Moses confident he and Cleary will gel despite only playing one game together in last year’s series before a calf injury in Blues camp ended his campaign.

“It’s got nothing to do with that leg. It’s my plant leg, but I’ll be fine,” he said.

“The hamstring was a scratch in my hammy. It was disappointing, but it is what it is.

“I’m not too worried about the combinations because I feel like we’re pretty OK there. It’s not ideal missing the first session in camp last week, but it is what it is.

“I feel like we put a lot of work in the first camp and I’ve obviously played with Nathan and everyone else, so I felt pretty comfortable coming in and going into this game.”

Having Moses fully fit is a huge relief for the Blues who were rocked on Saturday when young gun Casey McLean went down with a quadriceps injury in their final session before they flew to Melbourne.

McLean made his Origin debut off the bench in game one and was terrific after coming on for Tolu Koula, who was whacked in the head by Kalyn Ponga, who was sent off.

McLean was named to start in Melbourne in place of Stephen Crichton (AC joint), but his injury has opened the door for Mark Nawaqanitawase to make his Blues debut after he was originally named on the bench.

It comes six weeks after the human highlight reel downplayed his Origin chances when asked about it at a Roosters media opportunity at Bondi Beach before he had his own setback.

“And then to go and get injured that week! I’ve got no words, it’s crazy,” he said of his journey.

“Thanks to the medical staff at the Roosters who looked after me and got me ready for one of the games before this Origin.

“I was lucky enough to get the call, so I’m going to go out there and have some fun.”

The former Wallaby is heading back to rugby union at the end of the year, but he’s out to make the most of his opportunity having done it all on the world stage.

Nawaqanitawase is prone to making errors, but it’s only because he’s trying something that he’ll be encouraged to do on Wednesday after he returned with a bang with three tries in his first game back from injury for the Roosters.

“I’m going to do a backflip,” he joked when asked if he had something planned.

“I honestly don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m just going to run the ball, make tackles if I need to make tackles and do the job I need to do. I want to get involved, but at the same time I’ve got to do my job.

“I’ve got a team around me with players who can do anything, but if I just do my job, I’m sure it can help my team do what we need to get the win.

“I’ve heard how intense and physical the game is, so I’ve got to make sure I can breathe and at the same time focus because we’re coming up against a quality side with a number of talented players.

“I’ve got to make sure I’m not taking a break or anything like that, but at the same time I have to soak it all in because it’s State of Origin. It’s something I’ve grown up watching and I’ve imagined being a part of it, but now I’m actually here.”