Chasing nine: Points aggregate adds up to mental challenge for Game Two

Nine points.

Neither coach wanted to talk this week about the prospect of a 1-1 series draw in the first-ever two-game women's Origin series but it will now be the most discussed number in the lead-up to the final clash in Townsville on June 22.

NSW will need to improve drastically from their Game One performance if they’re to get close to the Maroons on home turf and retain a shield they spent three years trying to get back last season.

The decision to bring in a points aggregate system for a 1-1 series scoreline had already favoured the Maroons given their loss in the nation's capital last year and with an 18-10 win they've immediately put pressure back onto the champions.

NSW had no answers in a lacklustre performance but a potential turnaround in enemy territory and by a margin of nine points or more will be the perfect test for how well Kylie Hilder’s side can respond under pressure – something most of the players would not be used to at the Origin level.

The largest margin won by a side since women's Origin kicked off five years ago is by 10 - when the Sky Blues beat Queensland 14-4 in 2019.

“We know now that we have to win by nine, so we’ll rest and relook at everything and get ready to go to Townsville," Hilder said.

“It puts a lot more pressure [on us], as seen in the last 10 minutes we were chasing points. That’s where we made more mistakes so obviously that’s going to be in the girls’ heads. It’s going to be a lot to control, I think.

“We’ve got a big task ahead of us. We just need to win the game initially and worry about chasing points because if we do we’re going to end up like we did tonight.”

Maroons coach Tahnee Norris will sleep easier in the coming weeks as she prepares her side to maintain the momentum and wrap up the series on their own terms with a 2-0 series scoreline at Queensland Country Bank Stadium.

While Norris was adamant the eight-point advantage would not be a factor on their end, Maroons skipper Ali Brigginshaw admitted it had been talked about on the field in the final stages on Thursday night.

“I thought about it in the last 15 seconds… that if they go over there for a late try it would be pretty disappointing so I made sure [to yell out to the girls]," Brigginshaw said.

"Some of the girls probably don’t think about that stuff too much [but] we were defending the lead."

Norris earlier said, “It’s irrelevant to me, we’ve just got to win both games. That’s what we came in here thinking about and that’s how we’re going to execute.

“We just don’t want to drop a game, ever.”