Thursday night kicks off a big year for women’s rugby league. For the first time, women’s State of Origin becomes more than a standalone game, before an expanded NRLW featuring 10 teams takes flight next month.
While the upgrade from one Origin game to two is an improvement on previous years, it has left plenty of players and onlookers unsatisfied. New South Wales prop Millie Boyle has been particularly outspoken about the decision, saying a two-game series “seems ridiculous” and “doesn’t really feel fair”.
With NSW as the reigning champions, it appeared they could have held an early advantage if the Bledisloe Cup or Ashes model of the incumbent winners – retaining the trophy in case of a draw – was used. Instead the model favoured by netball’s Constellation Cup, with aggregate scores used to calculate the winner in the case of a drawn series, will be used. It is a fairer way to do things – to provide a clean slate at the start of the series – but still does not quite hold the prestige of a three-game Origin series.
The move to two games does present the opportunity to have a home and away match for the first time. The standalone match in 2022 was held in Canberra – technically a neutral venue but in reality a Sky Blues stronghold. NSW will get the first opportunity to play at home, with the opening match at Parramatta’s CommBank Stadium, before warmer climes beckon for the second game at Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville.
Scheduling provides an extra point of interest. NSW will be earmarking a win in game one to leverage their home ground advantage and stamp their authority on the series. But if there are two things a Queensland team loves, it is a home game and underdog status. This should make the Sky Blues wary if they do secure a win in game one – particularly if they do so with a narrow margin.
On paper, the two teams are hard to separate. NSW have the dynamic Emma Tonegato in full back but Queensland have the mercurial Tamika Upton. The Maroons have experience in the halves with Tarryn Aiken and Zahara Temara to guide the team around the field. The Sky Blues have the dogged and determined Rachael Pearson in combination with the youth and excitement of Jesse Southwell. At just 18 years old, Southwell will become the youngest NSW player – male or female – to play State of Origin, breaking a record held by Brad Fittler since 1990.
But the Sky Blues are missing two of their key forwards, Holli Wheeler and Caitlan Johnston, who both underwent knee surgery in early May. Johnston’s absence in particular is a blow for NSW coach Kylie Hilder, considering the impact the Jillaroos star had in her Origin debut last year. Johnston came off the interchange bench and stormed the Queensland line repeatedly to spark her teammates in their push for victory.
The Maroons’ most notable shift comes with captain Ali Brigginshaw moving out of the halves and into lock to make way for Temara. The 33-year-old has been instrumental for Queensland for a number of years, but 25-year-old Temara offers a more electrifying style of play that may be required in the ever-evolving Origin landscape.
One less-discussed detail surrounding the series is the fact that both teams have female head coaches – unusual in the world of women playing traditionally male-dominated sports. Even within the NRLW it is noteworthy – only one of the 10 teams in 2023 will have a female head coach, new entrants to the competition, the Gold Coast Titans.
The expansion of the series to two games is equally as important for Hilder and her Queensland counterpart, Tahnee Norris, as it is for their players. Moving from a standalone game to a series allows them to flex their coaching muscles a little more, to be more tactical and to build momentum within the group – rather than hurriedly assembling players for a few training camps before playing one game and disbanding again until the following year. It is a key development opportunity that both coaches will use to build on their already impressive credentials.
With more on the line than ever before, coaches and players alike have the opportunity to make this first Origin series a memorable one. Expanding last year’s skilful, passionate and nail-biting affair from one game to two will make for remarkable viewing and surely pave the way for a full three-game series in the years to come.
Follow the 2023 Women’s State of Origin series opener in Parramatta with Guardian Australia’s minute-by-minute live blog. Kick-off on Thursday night is 7.45pm AEST
