STATE OF ORIGIN,GAME ONE

Sorry guys every year it's the same with the titles for these games,hopefully they've suss it out for us.

100 years of Rugby League in Aussie land this year and as such we'll have a bit of a history lesson for those of you who don't know how this concept came about and how it has evoled into one of the greatest ever annual competitions between two sides who each year continuie to astonish and amase those of us who love this great game that is Rugby League.

To understand how this came about you have to go back to before 1980 to get a good insight into it,i'll try my best to be breif.

Since 1908 there has been Representitive matches between NSW and Queensland in RLi n Australia,in the early years and for a while after, Queensland were severley beaten at times and for 72 years untill the era we are in now was formed Queensland were almost always pants down bums smacked by the men from south of the interstate border.

By the 1970s these matches had become somewhat of a joke and were being played mid week to vastly under populated grounds,NSW were the Champs of the interstate rivalry and there was no more to say,people lost intrest and Rep foooty looked in deep trouble,come to the resue the AFL with an idea that the Rugby League powers that be saw and tryed it,In 1977 Leon Larker formed a game to be played between Western Australia vs Victoria in a so called "State of Origin Game" the game was played and Western Australia got up. (West Side!!!)(I live in the west where I live,Go the WestSiders of the World!!))

Larkin invited Barry Maranta (Who would later go on to form the Brisbane Broncos)a Brisbane Media man in Hugh Lunn and Wayne Reid,Manantras busieness partner and the Chairman of the QRL Rugby League Ron McAullife.

Later Lunn,Maranta and Lunn had a hand in making McAufllife's view on this match to be used in Rugby League with players from their home states representing thier home states as up untill 1980 players played for either side based on where you played Rugby League not the state you were born in.Lunns most notable comment in all of that was to say to Ron McAufllife :You can take the Queenslander out of Queensland but you can't take the Queensland out of a Queenslander"Ron the legend he was tryed for it to the President of the NSWRFL Kevin Humpreheys and suggested it could be used as a test match trial.

3 Sydney clubs in Souths,St George and Easts refused to make their Queensland players availible but Humpreheys was the man and said if they did not the game would be upgraded to an "Official Trial match" which would make it mandatory for the clubs to to release their players and so the Clubs backed down.

The First of the era of which we are in now started on the 8th of July 1980 at Queensland's Lang Park,the Sydney media gave it little press and predicted doom and gloom for the Queenslanders,Bob Fulton went as far to say thet the match itself was "The Non-Event of the sentury" but McAufllife was commited to the concept and continuied to promote the game and thousands of tickets were sold before the match had even be sanctioned,33,00 hardy souls were in attendance on that night and were not dissappointed as they watched Close and Boustead score and Meninga had a great night with the boot and Queensland Prevailed and a new legend was born in Australian Sports.

A year later and the series was to begin again,still in the year before the NSW side in Games 1 and 2 still were populated with Queensland players,Game 3 the State of Origin Match from the year before in which the Queenslanders won was to be the new concept for all future games and from 1981 onwards players whos Origin of Birth was from either state would now play for their birth state as for Years Sydney had the Biggest Rugby League Comp and so Queensland Players moved in order to get where they wanted to go,now they could do that and play for home.

Origins have produced great games and great players,perhaps the one I grew up watching and wondering "How does he do that and do it so slow and get away with it" and watching how strong and skillfull he was when I was growing up is the "King of Lang Park" King Wally Lewis,Suddenly the Queenslanders although still not really hearalded in Sydneys Media continuied to win and prosper,that is why perhaps when I was young and growing uo here in another country everyone was for Queensland,I was to,the Sydney side were looked upon as fantastic big strong sides and Queensland being led around by a balding,pot bellied Wally Lewis were considered easy beats and it came across over here in every game that we saw,NSW were the Favs and QLD were the under dogs and there was no way around that,and yet the Queenslanders continuied to win and Wally Lewis's legend was born and Queensland the side who were considered no chance were on top and the big strong New South Welsh Men were'nt.

In 1985 4 years into the Concept Steve Mortimer led the Blues to a Series win in front of 29,000 at the Sydney Cricket Ground and the year after the Blues then swept the series, the first time a team had acheived that feat.

Queensland beat the Blues again the next year and then in 1988 another new legend in the making was put on for Queensland and then he with Waly Lewis gave Queensland their most dominant ever period over the Blues and won both in 88 and 89 with a swept series,that player was Allan Langer.

In 1990 the Blues came back with wins as they had a pretty good halves pairring themselves by then and the Queenslanders were getting on and some were retiring and the Blues won with Stuart and Benny Ellias leading the way for them,NSW were also getting some great younger players comming through back inthe early 90's also with the likes of Laurie Daley and they went on a golden run of thier own.

Then along came the SuperLeague war,I'll be breif,clubs that were alinged with the ARL could play the series and Queensland once again got up and dominated,which was pretty amasing really as the Broncos were in the Superleague,meanwhile the Super League clubs formed their own comp with New Zealand being added into the mix,fast forward to 1998 and both comps were once again together and the Queenslanders won the first of the re united series 2-1.

The Games are always tight and only a handfull have been blow outs it has an amasing stats base to look at where almost both teams right from the beginning match up incredibly well,the intensety of the Games are legendary although it's not as hard as it used to look as the game is played faster and guys can't go around punching people out,they'll get sent off nowadays,so some of the lustre of it has gone for me,but there have been incredible comebacks in these games and the games themselves although not quite as smash and bash as it was when I was young are still great to watch and this years series looks like another good one.

Game One this wedesday Night with the Maroons looking likely winners heres their probable starters list:Slater,Tate,Inglis,Hodges,Folau,Hunt,Thurston,Webb,Smith,Civoniceva,Crocker,Thaiday,Jhonson,Marsh,Hannat,Myles,Lillyman.

New South Wales:Stewart,Hayne??,Gasneir,Cooper,Quinn,Bird,Wallace,White,Buderus,Cross,Hoffman,Mason,Gallen,Lafranchii,Tupou,Fitzgibbon and Hornby.

Just looking at these teams one in the Maroons stands out like a beacon of everything to like in Rugby League while the Blues look like a team of fighters without the skill of their opponents,last year the Maroons showed just how good they can be,can they do it again this season and sweep the Blues again?? Hard to say,last year I tipped Queensland with margins in every game except for the last one,alll 3 were close and got home,this season I am inclined to think that the Maroons will lose one match as two are played in Sydney and I also think that although the Blues look very underdone going up against what is pretty much the Australian Backline minus Gasnier and a forward pack with some great talent in it as well as two of the best playmakers in the game in their side that if the Blues are to win a game then the first one is the one they will win.

Last year NSW went close in Sydney and had the running of the game in the first half but lost it in the second,just like Queensland have a great record at home the Blues have a pretty good record at home as well ,win or lose they are a far more compeittive side than away and I think the Blues will get up here in Game 1 this year.

The Maroons have all the talent in the world alot like how the NSW teams of the mid to late 80's sides did for NSW then,they have the two best playmakers in Australia in their side in Thurston and Smith,they have two freaks in Slater and Inglis,they have a very commited and hard forward pack with the likes of Petro,Webb and Myles and realy look odds on to win this game and win the series,bit I still think that Thurston although playing great is not going as well as what we all think and if the Blues can get some in your face defence on him then it could cut their options way down and from there the Blues are a big chance.

I'm a Queenslader fan but I actuallly like this Blues side,they have a good Fullback and Centre Pairring,in fact for me Gasnier has been the standout of the season,the things he can do in games on his own are amasing,his speed and strength have been a highlight of League this season for me,they also have two very hard running wingers who will make ground and I like Wallace as a playmaker and he could shine with the talent at his disposal tonight,he has been leading an understrength Broncos side around for a while now and has been orchestrating wins with them and now he has a fully fit and very talented backline to play with,Bird is not a Stanbdoff and I hate him being played there but what he does bring to the table is aggression and that will help the Blues alot,You look through this forward pack and they have some big bad boys in there with White and Cross up front with Buderus who has been having a fantastic season as well i might add and a backrow of Hoffman,Mason and Gallen and a bench with Lafranchii,Tupou and Fittzy on there,they have a very strong team who look very agressive compared to their Queensland Counterparts and i think if they can get up and sting the Maroons in defence and this team that they have named can do that the Blues will get to the Maroons and win.

Forget the recent results as every year the trends in these matches are broken,really in these games the better team on the night really does win and that has been the case for a number of years,so really it's a toin coss.

I've given you the reasons I think that New South Wales will win,I think they have a more aggressive side that if used correctly will win this game,they have alot to play for and although they don't have the playmakers of the Maroons they do have an overall tougher side with a bit more talent in certain places that if used correctly should see them come out on top...No margin on this one,But i'll be on the Blues in game 1...Good Luck.

Pick : New South Wales WIN
Odds : 2.20
Stake : 9 / 10
Bookmaker : Bet365
Match Result :
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