Blues 22 Maroons 12
Brad Fittler reckons he doesn't gamble, but he would have heard about Lucky Eleven.
For an eccentric coach whose quirky methods are the stuff of legend, is it any coincidence his astonishing 11 debutants came up trumps against a Queensland State of Origin dynasty victorious 11 times in the last 12 years?
Blues players celebrate after winning Game 1 of the 2018 State of Origin series at the MCG.
Photo: AAP
Just as he hoped he would, one of the biggest risks in Origin history has NSW just 80 minutes away from outrunning a decade of dominance after a speedy Blues mowed down the Maroons 22-12 at the MCG on Wednesday night.
Like has been done to them in so many years before, Fittler's fresh faced baby Blues unburdened by ghosts of series past wore down a dogged Queensland through the sheer speed of fullback James Tedesco and livewire hooker Damien Cook.
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A game which appeared to swing against them on the whim of two stray James Maloney passes turned their way in the second half as an uber cool Fittler watched his side pile on the last 14 points of the match. It was such a Queensland way to win.
Much of the one-nil series lead can be owed to Tedesco, just one of six survivors from last year's epic collapse. He shadowed a brilliant Cook for much of the night, carving Queensland up through the middle as the younger and quicker legs outpointed a Greg Inglis-inspired Maroons.
And the side's oldest head Maloney, who indirectly gifted Queensland both its tries, played a steady hand alongside calm rookie halfback Nathan Cleary to steer the Blues to the brink of series win for a generation of fans who are almost foreign to the feeling.
All week, Fittler has let his men talk freely. And they expressed themselves in the same manner. If you have to hide from the media, how likely are you to hide when Munster, Morgan and McCullough are turning the blowtorch on you?
Among his 11 debutants, a record almost as old as Origin itself, some could barely find words when they wandered onto the MCG for their last hitout on the eve of game one. They found a few four-letter expletives after a couple of Maloney passes either side of half-time. It didn't matter in the end.
Who impressed most? Hard to tell. There was barely a bad player, facing a Queensland side so unfamiliar to years past.
Representative retiree Cameron Smith sat in the stands with Billy Slater, his hamstring feared to be on the brink of pinging. Cooper Cronk and Johnathan Thurston sat at home.
Its been 15 years since one of their names havent been on a Queensland teamsheet, which relishes — just as much as it rues — late changes to its make-up. No one quite does crisis like Mick Fanning and Queenslands Origin horde.
But this one? This was as chaotic a preparation as theyve had for 20 years, or so the narrative goes. Dane Gagai's flaky finger needed to withstand a warm-up in the sheds before being declared right to go. They couldn't wriggle out of this one, though.
Just when NSW had the foot hovered above a Queensland throat as gravelly as Darren Lockyer's on the sideline, the Maroons somehow pushed it away again.
It came in the form of a long-range Valentine Holmes intercept, the Sharks flyer robbing his old teammate Maloney in front of 87,000 plus witnesses. NSW were poised to land a hammer blow, already up eight points thanks to a scintillating Tedesco try and a pair of Maloney goals.
But just as the five-eighth, who played a huge part in Tedesco's try which started by the nous of hooker Cook, wafted a ball wide to James Roberts, Holmes pounced and bolted 90 metres to haul Queensland back into the contest.
In the end, Fittler would have been a relieved man to have a two-point lead at the break. The Maroons prodded, as they always do, to hurt NSW most in the minutes before half-time. The Blues hung on.
They couldn't manage to do it any longer than two minutes into the second half. Retreating on their own line after Maloney threw a forward pass on NSW's first possession after the break, Maloney hung onto Will Chambers' bootlaces a couple of metres out.
It only delayed the inevitable, Ben Hunt kicking for Gagai's strapped hands to put Queensland ahead for the first time.
But what those right digits taped like a prized fighter giveth, they also taketh away. The next set Gagai spilled the pill under questionable attention from Angus Crichton. It changed the game.
Tedesco set up Latrell Mitchell's first Origin try moments later, then made the break before Maloney kicked for a flying Tom Trbojevic to turn the table on Holmes and wrench the ball out of his hands and touch down to restore NSW's lead. Josh Addo-Carr added the icing on top.
Fittler's number had well and truly come up.
NSW Blues 22 (James Tedesco, Latrell Mitchell, Tom Trbojevic, Josh Addo-Carr tries; James Maloney 3 goals) defeated Queensland Maroons (Valentine Holmes, Dane Gagai tries; Holmes 2 goals) at the MCG. Referees: Bernard Sutton, Ashley Klein. Crowd: 87,122.
Adam Pengilly is a Sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.
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