New South Wales legend and Blues assistant coach Andrew Johns has singled out NSW debutant Hudson Young as a man to watch in Wednesday night’s State of Origin opener in Adelaide.

Speaking on the Wide World of Sports podcast ‘Immortal Behaviour’, Johns was quick to heap praise on the young Raiders enforcer.

“I haven’t had much to do with Hudson, he was brought up in Branxton which is about 10 minutes from Cessnock,” Johns began.

“He’s a tough rooster that boy, knows his game, really trains hard, prepares really well, very diligent in how he treats his body. I was asking him about how he likes to play and he explained what he likes to do and is very thorough in the way he prepares.”

Young will start in the back-row at the Adelaide Oval.