:: State of Origin :: Stage of Origin ::

14 – Karmichael Hunt (Brisbane), 2 – Darius Boyd (Brisbane)*, 3 – Greg Inglis ( Melbourne), 4 – Brent Tate (NZ Warriors), 5 – Israel Folau (Melbourne), 6 – Johnathan Thurston (North Qld), 7 – Scott Prince (Gold Coast), 8 – Steve Price (NZ Warriors), 9 – Cameron Smith (Melbourne – c), 10 – Petero Civoniceva (Penrith), 11 – Michael Crocker (Melbourne), 17 – Ashley Harrison (Gold Coast).), 13 – Dallas Johnson (Melbourne).

INTERCHANGE: 1 – Billy Slater ( Melbourne), 12 – Sam Thaiday ( Brisbane), 15 - Ben Hannant ( Brisbane) *, 16 – Nate Myles ( Sydney Roosters).

COACH – Mal Meninga

NEW SOUTH WALES (* - on debut)

1 – Brett Stewart (Manly-Warringah), 2 – Steve Turner (Melbourne) *, 3 – Mark Gasnier (St. George-Illawarra), 4 – Matt Cooper (St.George-Illawarra), 5 – Anthony Quinn (Melbourne), 6 – Greg Bird (Cronulla-Sutherland), 7 – Peter Wallace (Brisbane), 8 – Craig Fitzgibbon (Sydney Roosters), 9 – Danny Buderus ( Newcastle – c), 10 – Brett White ( Melbourne), Craig Fitzgibbon ( Sydney Roosters), 11 – Willie Mason ( Sydney Roosters), 12 – Ryan Hoffman ( Melbourne), 13 – Paul Gallen (Cronulla-Sutherland).

INTERCHANGE: 14 –Kurt Gidley ( Newcastle), 15 – Anthony Laffranchi (Gold Coast), 16 – Steve Simpson ( Newcastle), 17 – Anthony Tupou ( Sydney Roosters.

COACH: Craig Bellamy.

QLD STRIKE BACK...HARD!

By Andrew Pelechaty.

Queensland has taken the 2008 Origin series to a deciding game after an emphatic 30-0 win at Suncorp Stadium tonight. It equalled Queensland’s biggest winning margin in Origin history. It was just the second time NSW have been held scoreless in Origin. The first was in 1995 at the SFS, when Wayne Bartrim scored the only points in Queensland’s 2-0 win.

The doomsdayers were out for Queensland in the lead-up, following the withdrawal of Darren Lockyer. Yet, a super-motivated Queensland - infront of 52,416 fans - dominated from the outset, with two tries to debutant Darius Boyd, and four goals by Thurston, giving the Maroons a 16-0 lead at halftime. Their defence was superb, shutting down any NSW half-chances, and they showed they were prepared to spread the ball, attacking NSW’s right-hand defence for Boyd’s two tries – in the 7 th and 20 th minutes - both created by breaks from Greg Inglis.

Any hopes of a NSW fightback were squashed in the 63th minute, when Willie Mason illegally stripped Ben Hannant of the ball deep in NSW territory. Originally deemed a Queensland knock-on, the decision was overturned, and Thurston’s penalty goal gave Queensland an 18-0 lead. It was poetic justice for the Queenslanders, as Mason had stoked the publicity flames with his “redneck nutbags” comment during the lead-up. Queensland increased the margin two minutes later, when Ben Hannant was given the benefit of the doubt by referee Tony Archer. Close to the try-line, Hannant burrowed over off a Cameron Smith pass, though Mason appeared to hold him up. It was referred to the video referee Bill Harrigan, and with the evidence inconclusive, it was refs call. A debut try to Israel Folau four minutes later, off a well-weighted Scott Prince chip kick, gave Queensland a 30-0 lead. Johnathan Thurston, who was under fire after the first game, had a perfect goalkicking record, slotting seven from seven. NSW didn’t help their cause with a number of unforced errors (16 to 8), while Queensland dominated possession, with 56% of the ball. Queensland stymied Peter Wallace’s influence, to the point where he was taken off late in the game. NSW had only a handful of genuine scoring opportunities, and wasted them through poor goal-line options. NSW Captain Danny Buderus did a power of work, making 42 tackles; Queensland’s Dallas Johnson was the next best, with 35.

While NSW would be hopeful of turning around their fortunes back at Homebush on July 2, the series now has an eerie similarity to 2006. After losing the first game, Queensland beat NSW 30-6 at Suncorp, and took that momentum to Sydney, where they won the third game, and the series, 16-14. Considering the comprehensive nature of tonight’s win, few would bet against it happening again.

QLD 30 (Darius Boyd 2, Ben Hannant, Israel Folau tries, Johnathan Thurston 7 goals) defeated NSW 0 at Suncorp Stadium.