Updated ,first published
This is not how it was supposed to end. Some will argue it never should have gotten to this stage.
And yet, despite dominating the opening two games, Queensland has been left shell-shocked by a State of Origin boilover, as New South Wales galvanised in the face of severe criticism to triumph 30-12 at Suncorp Stadium.
Having dominated for all bar 23 minutes across the Sydney and Melbourne encounters, a Maroons ambush at home appeared inevitable, as the blowtorch was turned on Blues coach Laurie Daley after the 44-24 game two demolition.
But come the decider, Queensland could not win a moment, nor contain their errors in a far cry from the team who had completed at 95 per cent on their last outing.
“We just put too much pressure on ourselves. Making 14 errors in a State of Origin game puts a massive amount of pressure on your defence, and they were good enough to capitalise and score,” Maroons skipper Cameron Munster said.
“I felt like our defensive effort was there, but it just took a lot of gas out of us. Unfortunately, we just couldn’t get our footy going when we had the ball.
“Sometimes when you’re defending that much, it drains your energy for attack and takes away your sting. We just didn’t ice our moments, and it’s incredibly frustrating, especially at home.”
The first six-again of the contest went the Blues way, and changed the momentum. While Jack Bostock and Mark Nawaqanitawase would both knock on as opportunities beckoned – the latter coming after Reuben Cotter’s dropped ball coming out of trouble – the pressure eventually mounted.
Queensland halfback Sam Walker’s attempted early kick went straight down James Tedesco’s throat, and Selwyn Cobbo’s inability to diffuse a Nathan Cleary bomb had the hosts reeling again.
Cleary would soon slice through at close range, and he had his second try of the decider after another six-again got the Blues marching – Liam Martin’s half-break unleashing Stephen Crichton and Nawaqanitawase to create the chance.
Two more mistakes from Cobbo also proved costly.
His first was a fumble into touch as Queensland opened space for him to unleash, while his second came as he relaxed for Cleary to claim a one-on-one steal. Cameron Murray would score the Blues’ third try from the fresh set.
Any chance the Maroons had of claiming back the momentum, after Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow sliced through for his 15th Origin try, was also snuffed out by ill-discipline, as Briton Nikora’s raised arm to Bostock’s head drew a penalty against the run of play.
The Maroons’ iron-clad defence seemed to disappear. In the first-half alone, they missed 30 tackles to the Blues’ 10 – Munster sliding off Martin in the lead up to Cleary’s second try the most glaring moment.
Any halftime rev up from coach Billy Slater was swiftly forgotten, as Kurt Capewell’s loose carry in the second half’s opening set put them straight under the pump again. While the Maroons’ defence held firm for two sets, a Capewell drop thrust them onto the back foot once again.
All this occurred as Walker was forced from the field for a HIA, with Reece Walsh joining the fray.
Walsh appeared to spark something, his energy creating field position for Cobbo to score off his own deflected grubber. But Walsh’s crossfield kick soon after was spilled by his teammates, with Bostock cleared of touching the ball as Bradman Best raced the length of the field.
A Jojo Fifita try in the corner gave the Maroons hope, but even Walker’s goal kicking – flawless across the opening two games – began to falter, as his two misses (with Walsh missing a third) kept the deficit at 12 points.
Even when the Maroons thought they had crossed through Robert Toia after the Blues allowed a Walker bomb to land, they were denied as the Bunker found Max Plath offside.
It summed up an evening where simply nothing went right, as Hudson Young strolled over as the full-time siren sounded to inflict Queensland with a third straight loss at home.
While all the attention had been on New South Wales leading into the decider, there will be some key moments – avoidable and unavoidable – that will leave Queensland wondering what might have been since the campaign launched in May.
Game one appeared smooth sailing until Kalyn Ponga was sent off for the contentious shoulder charge that marred the aftermath of the clash, and allowed the Blues to fight back from 20-6 down.
The most hardened of Maroons fans will say the series never should have needed a third game to decide the shield holders, but Slater’s decision to inject lock Trent Loiero rather than Gehamat Shibasaki drew queries.
Blues centre Kotoni Staggs, who was axed for Bradman Best in game three, generated so much momentum for the Blues to ride when Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow was moved to fullback and Capewell into the backline.
Then there was the concussion suffered to inspirational prop Lindsay Collins which ruled him out of game three. His talismanic effort plays showcased across 17 Origins were dearly missed.
Even with Pat Carrigan cleared to replaced him after five weeks out with a syndesmosis injury, he was not introduced at all – Slater opting to inject Jeremiah Nanai for Capewell after Walsh, Loiero and Plath had already been used.
“I thought the injection of Jeremiah and Reece actually added something. It gave us a little bit of a different look and created some opportunities for us,” Slater said.
“But … it doesn’t change the tough feeling you have when you leave two guys on the bench [including Murray Taulagi], and they don’t get to play.”
Irrespective of the decisions made and mistakes committed, this was a case of one team who seemingly wanted it more, and another who failed to handle the expectation.
“There’s always a lot of pressure in big games. At the end of the day, you’ve just got to be able to harness that pressure,” Munster said.
Slater added: “I wouldn’t say that there was a lack of enthusiasm. We showed a lot of heart, and we never gave up.
“We had our chances, but we made it pretty hard on ourselves at certain times, which probably took a fair bit of juice out of us.”
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
