Two of Queensland's greatest ever State of Origin centres have given Darius Boyd the tick of approval to move into the vital position.
Maroons coach Kevin Walters will confirm his team's starting roles for Origin II on Thursday, where it's anticipated that Boyd will be named to start at left centre.
The incumbent Australia fullback has never played anywhere but the wing or No.1 jersey for Queensland, and has not played a full game in the centres since early 2009 for St George Illawarra.
The tpotential gap between Boyd's games at centre is no concern for either Mal Meninga or Justin Hodges, who scored a combined 11 tries in 53 games for the Maroons at Origin level.
Meninga coached Boyd in 23 of his 27 Origin games, and resisted the urge to move him off the left wing even when Billy Slater was injured for the final game of 2015.
And while he maintained he wouldn't be surprised if he returned to the far edge for Queensland's must-win game in Sydney next Wednesday, he was confident he wouldn't be left exposed in the centre role.
"He will handle it easily," Meninga told Fox Sports' Queenslanders Only program..
"He is such a talent and a great rugby league player.
"He reads play better than most and that why he is so good at fullback. He doesn't panic and is experienced. So it won't worry him."
Boyd confirmed on Wednesday night that he had spoken to Walters about the possible shift, and they would look at it in their first full training session on Friday.
The men he will mark from NSW, Josh Dugan and Blake Ferguson, were quick to point out the difficulties associated with shifting to the centres from fullback when quizzed on Wednesday.
But Hodges said he didn't see the move as a risk for the desperate Maroons - even if Boyd is inexperienced in the position.
"I don't think it's a big gamble. He's just going to have to train there and prepare differently," Hodges said.
"You've got to make a decision whether to come in, stay out, stay square - all these things when he is playing on the wing you don't necessarily have to decide... but he is a great defender, he is a great talker.
"He'll have JT (Johnathan Thurston) and Gavin Cooper inside him who are both great defenders. He's just got to stick to the basics, don't over-complicate things and he'll do the job quite well."
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