State of Origin 2019: Blues Win Thrilling Game 3 to Take Series over Maroons
New South Wales Blues won Game 3 of the 2019 State of Origin to win the series for the second year in a row, beating Queensland Maroons 26-20 thanks to a last-minute try from James Tedesco.
Queensland had the better of play in the first half, but the score was tied at 8-8 entering the break. James Maloney opened the scoring for NSW with a penalty, then Maroons' Felise Kaufusi went over for a try. The conversion made it 6-2 to Queensland, and Ethan Lowe's penalty increased the lead to 8-2.
Blues' Paul Vaughan notched his own try after half an hour, and the conversion brought the scores level.
Tedesco handed Blues the lead in the second half with a strong solo effort, and Damien Cook's weaving run to double the advantage was even more impressive.
Josh McGuire's late try set up a thrilling conclusion, and after Josh Papalii's equalising try, the fans in Sydney had their hearts in their throats. But in the final minute, an ambitious attacking move saw Tedesco score his second try, winning his team the series.
The two teams had split the first two games of the series. Queensland won the opener 18-14, but New South Wales dominated in Game 2, winning 38-6.
It's New South Wales' third win since 2014, splitting the last six series. Queensland won eight in a row prior to the 2014 edition.
While the Blues came into the match with momentum on their side, Maroons had a dominant record in recent deciders:
It took the Blues just six minutes to jump out to an early lead when Maloney converted for two after back-to-back penalties.
Some poor discipline soon handed momentum to Queensland, however, and they made good distance with their sets.
A perfect Corey Norman kick bounced right into the arms of Kuafusi for the first try of the night for the visitors:
New South Wales continued to give away poor penalties as their line struggled with the speed of Queensland. Maroons also dominated with the kicking game, controlling the position battle.
But while Queensland were on top, strict officiating restricted the flow of the match.
One fan was not happy about that:
One of these penalties resulted in two more points for Maroons, but the end of the half belonged to Blues, who tied things up after a strong run from Tedesco led to a Vaughan try which was later converted.
He showed some excellent power after lowering his shoulders:
Maroons pressed to regain the lead in the final minutes of the half after a careless kick from the hosts, but the Blues didn't break and avoided more penalties.
The hosts took a blow when Michael Morgan collided with the elbow of McGuire early in the second half, forcing him off the pitch.
But their luck soon turned. Standout Tedesco spotted a gap in the lines and went for it, combining power and speed to score the go-ahead try:
Mistakes started to creep into Maroons' game, with two knock-ons ruining promising positions. Blues took full advantage, doubling their lead through Cook after 60 minutes:
The hosts wasted several good chances to close out the contest with more penalties, and Maroons started to push for more points. A try for the visitors seemed inevitable, and McGuire put the points on the board after 72 minutes, setting up a thrilling finale.
Relentless pressure eventually paid off:
With eight minutes left to play, Queensland appeared primed to steam past a tired New South Wales defence. Papalii tied things up with just four minutes left to play:
But with time running out, Tedesco came up big one more time, scoring after Blake Ferguson somehow stayed in bounds:
It was a fitting end to an incredible decider that will not be forgotten anytime soon. Fans at the ANZ Stadium more than got their money's worth, and got to celebrate a win for the home team on top of it.
