NSW are fearing an Origin II backlash from out of form Queensland half Johnathan Thurston - the man dubbed the best player in the game just a year ago.

Thurston's form has mirrored that of his NRL club side North Queensland, who fell to their sixth straight loss on the weekend and are only propped up by South Sydney at the foot of the ladder.

He was roundly criticised for a below par performance in Queensland's game one loss at ANZ Stadium last month, some critics even calling for him to be dropped in favour of Gold Coast No.7 Scott Prince.

Now both are in the Maroons side following Darren Lockyer's withdrawal due to ongoing knee troubles, and it is expected Prince's inclusion will ease some of the playmaking pressure on Thurston.

Despite the criticisms, the Blues - who arrived in enemy territory - believe Thurston's lack of form has been overstated and that the Cowboys maestro has become a victim of his own greatness.

And that's why they're preparing for the worst at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday night.

"I don't know whether he's lacking confidence, he hasn't played at his best this year but there's no reason why he can't turn around Wednesday night and have a blinder and kickstart the rest of his season," NSW five-eighth Greg Bird said.

"He's a player that can pretty much make anything happen.

"He definitely hasn't been at his worst, he hasn't been playing badly, it's just that he hasn't been doing the flashy, flamboyant things that we've seen him do in the past."

Like a warrior too scared to prod a beast wounded in battle, veteran NSW forward Craig Fitzgibbon also refused to knock Thurston.

"I don't want to be buying into that, he could come up with anything, he's only 80 minutes away from anything," Fitzgibbon said.

"His standards, when you're probably the best player in the comp for a couple of years, it might seem like he's down on form but he's still playing pretty good."

The Blues are expecting Origin II to be a more open affair than Origin I, and not just because of the Prince-Thurston combination in the Queensland halves.

Despite recent heavy rain in Brisbane, and more forecast over the coming days, Fitzgibbon claimed the Suncorp Stadium surface would be more conducive to attacking football than the greasy ANZ Stadium turf dished up for game one.

"Maybe the track might have more points in it than Homebush," Fitzgibbon said.

"Obviously it's been raining a bit but I'm assuming it's still going to be a bit quicker than Homebush was so I guess the game might have a few more points in it."

The Blues will wrap up their preparations with a training run at the match venue on Tuesday afternoon.

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