This was published 3 years ago
What a memorable night that was (if you’re a NSW fan).
The Blues were utterly dominant when it mattered most. Hasn’t this Origin series just roared to life.
We’ve got you covered with all the latest news and analysis from Perth.
MATCH REPORT: Panthers perfection as Blues demolish Queensland in emphatic fashion
PLAYER RATINGS: How the Blues and Maroons fared in game two
On the brink, Brad Fittler turned back to his personal origin: he went west. With the 2022 interstate series on the line after losing the first match in Sydney, the NSW coach and Panthers junior headed for the Nepean to collect Apisai Koroisau, the Penrith spark plug noticeable in his absence from Origin I. On his way, Fittler stopped in Belmore to pick up Matt Burton.
By the time he got onto the plane for Perth, he had assembled a line-up that turned this State of Origin match into Penrith versus Queensland.
With eight of last year’s premiers aboard, Fittler kept going west. He took them until there was nowhere else to go. The far edge of the continent was as good a place as any to play a match that, in rugby league dramatics, was do or die. By the time they got there, it was either win this game or end up in the Indian Ocean.
If Penrith have accelerated club rugby league, however, Queensland have matched them in Origin. In tempo, the Blue Panthers have come up against their own mirror image; in Sydney the Maroon Panthers matched and beat them.
NSW coach Brad Fittler described Felise Kaufusi’s controversial sin-binning as “justified” as he welcomed the prospect of a series decider in Brisbane, and trying to break nearly two decades of State of Origin history.
Fittler, who is just 80 minutes away from his fourth series win in five years, was vocal in his criticism of referee Ashley Klein’s policing of the ruck in game one.
And his team responded with a Nathan Cleary-inspired 44-12 win at Perth’s Optus Stadium on Sunday night after Kaufusi was banished a minute before half-time for holding down in the ruck.
Queensland coach Billy Slater said Klein’s decision wasn’t an excuse for the Maroons’ collapse, which saw his tiring team concede 30 points in as many minutes once Kaufusi returned to the field in the second half.
But Fittler backed the call, and said his team were much better in the ruck than game one after the return of Jake Trbojevic.
History suggests NSW still have an uphill battle to secure a come-from-behind series win but their outstanding showing on Sunday night will surely ensure they head to Suncorp Stadium as favourites.
A lot can happen in 17 days, with a handful of NRL rounds still to play out.
James Tedesco says there will be a team who arrives in Brisbane with their backs to the wall.
Just which side that will be is anyone’s guess. The prospect of a decider at Suncorp Stadium suggests it has to be Tedesco and the NSW Blues looking to beat the odds on July 13.
But that same NSW team just scored 36 unanswered points to demolish Queensland in Perth, levelling the series at 1-1 and silencing questions about Brad Fittler’s selections, Nathan Cleary’s skill, and the perception of panic south of the Tweed.
So, maybe it’s the Maroons who have their backs to the wall despite a home ground advantage. Because Billy Slater’s honeymoon period is over, and the Blues should head to Brisbane armed with the best playmaker in the game after Cleary’s man of the match performance on Sunday night.
It’s thirsty work winning an Origin game, and no one knows that better than Jake Trbojevic, who more than earned his keep in game two