The NSW Blues strike first and are in the box seat to win the 2026 State of Origin series.
The good guys did it the hard way gifting the Maroons a 20-point head start (in the first 20 minutes) and scoring the winning try in the last play of the match.
The Start
Both teams started like they were running in quicksand. Five runs up the middle and kick the ball. But it was Blues errors that ignited the Maroons in shifting the ball out wide and they were rewarded with three tries in seven minutes.
When Queensland kicked a penalty goal to extend their lead to 20 points, I have to admit my writeup was going to be somewhat different to what you are reading now.
Little did anyone know that those 20 points were all the points the Blues were going to offer, and you could see the momentum start to swing towards our everyday Heroes.
That Try
Only Teddy could have manufactured that try outleaping the Hammer in NSW’s final Hail-Mary play. It was Teddy at his chaotic best catching the ball, bobbling it, and scoring.
In the press conference, Qld Captain Cam Munster said it could quite have easily been a knock-on and the result would have gone the other way.
That try brought cheers of delight down south and groans up north. But the biggest controversy had already occurred.
The Send-Off
Queensland thug, Kalyn Ponga, was marched from the field after racing across field to knock out Blues winger Tolu Koula at the 57th minute.
Blues fans were baying for blood but would have been surprised the 10-minute sinbin turned into an early shower. Even the Bunker was surprised when Referee Ashley Klein ignored their assessment and sent Ponga off anyway. I can only recall one player being sent off this season in the NRL for a similar tackle and his was way worse than Ponga’s.
Surprisingly, the unbiased Queensland rag The Courier-Mail took the ruling on the chin.
They have even started a petition at change.org to end Klein’s Origin career.
The NRL however backed the officials.
“The NRL supports Ashley Klein’s decision to send off Kalyn Ponga during State of Origin one,” said NRL GM of elite competitions, Graham Annesley.
“This incident involved clear and forceful shoulder-to-head and head-to-head contact with no mitigating factors.”
“Player safety is extremely important and the game will make no apology for taking strong action on foul play.”
“The communication between the on-field referee and the Bunker official allowed for multiple views of the incident, live and on replay.”
“Confirmation of direct, forceful shoulder-to-head contact through a shoulder charge action meant the referee decided the correct course of action was to dismiss the player.”
FYI, Kalyn Ponga was hit with a grade two charge and was fined 23 per cent of his match fee. Which coincidentally matches his time off the field.
If you would like to sign the Courier-Mail’s petition you can do so below.
Sign the Courier-Mail’s change.org petition here
Origin 2
This will be massive. The Blues can ill afford to start as slow, and error ridden again.
The Maroons, obviously need to win to take the series to a decider at Suncorp Stadium.
The Blues were in a similar position last series and were very disappointing in Games 2 and 3. They will want to wrap it all up in Melbourne.
