How pain of 2025 is driving Blues' Origin quest
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The Westpac NSW Blues have vowed to apply the lessons of last year's series defeat as they look to regain the State of Origin shield after a stunning Game One victory.
The Blues pulled off the biggest comeback in Origin history to turn a 20-0 deficit into a 22-20 win in front of nearly 80,000 fans at Accor Stadium on Wednesday night.
While a markedly different match to Game One last year, the result puts NSW in the same position as 2025, up 1-0 as the series heads to neutral territory for the second contest.
Cleary dominates Origin 1
This season, however, Laurie Daley's side is determined to ensure a different outcome across the final two games of the series.
"It's about staying in the moment," edge forward Hudson Young said. "We fell behind by pretty much that scoreline in Perth last year. We need to make sure we start well and not put ourselves under that sort of pressure.
"We made a lot of errors tonight, which is a good sign that we can play like that in the first half and still get away with the win."
Match: Blues v Maroons
Game 1 -
home Team
Blues
away Team
Maroons
Venue: Accor Stadium, Sydney
Daley did not hide his disappointment with his side's first half performance, in which they conceded three early tries to fall behind 20-0 after 20 minutes.
At one point, NSW had a completion rate of just 44% after an error-riddled start to the contest, while Queensland dominated the battle up front to repeatedly roll down the field and create try-scoring opportunities.
The Blues were good enough to capitalise on the Kalyn Ponga send off, but they recognise they will have to produce a much-improved showing in Game Two on June 17 at the MCG if they are to take an unassailable 2-0 series lead.
Blues v Maroons - Game I, 2026
With Origin III to be played at Suncorp Stadium, NSW are desperate to avoid a decider.
Daley has some tough decisions to make before naming his team for the second match, with Ethan Strange starring at five-eighth after he was thrust into the starting side the day before the game.
Mitchell Moses was a late scratching due to a hamstring injury but is expected to be healthy for Game Two.
Tolu Koula is also likely to be available after suffering a head knock on Wednesday night, but it's likely he won't play again before the team is selected due to the 11-day stand down rules.
Daley suggested post-game he will select both Koula and Moses if available, with Strange and Casey McLean likely to line up on the six-man bench.
"Last year Game One we played really well but tonight I don't think we played anywhere near what we're capable of," Daley said. "That puts us in a better frame of mind when we waltz back into camp for Game Two.
"The guys that played tonight were exceptional but we know what Origin's like. You never know who's available, you've just got to make sure you've got the right people and they're playing well."
While NSW are eager to apply the lessons of 2025 throughout the next month, last year's series will also provide Queensland with plenty of hope.
After a disappointing loss at Suncorp Stadium in Game One, the Maroons went on the road to stun the Blues in Perth and Sydney to claim a come-from-behind series victory.
Munster and Slater's bond through shared experiences
It's not the journey coach Billy Slater had hoped to travel two years in a row, but now they're here, the Queensland legend is confident his side has the ability to repeat history.
"It's possible," Slater said. "It's happened the last two years, from both sides.
"At the end of the day, it's a new year. We're going to take some positives out of what we did and there were a lot so we'll go back and review it.
"The biggest thing is picking ourselves up off the canvas. The feeling we have at the moment, it's natural to feel heartbroken and disappointed but we won't be throwing the baby out with the bathwater."
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