Summary
Well, what a night down in Melbourne in front of a bumper crowd. The Blues controlled the game for most of the night, but there were some patches that the Maroons and their fans will take a lot of heart from. Suncorp Stadium is always a very difficult place for the Blues to win, but they showed tonight that they’re capable of taking on a hostile crowd. The big focus for the Blues will be their discipline and reducing their penalty count going into the decider. Their kicking game was the huge highlight tonight, so they will look to further hone that over the next three weeks. Having Latrell Mitchell back seemed to spark a lot of heart and they looked like a team who can do whatever they set their minds to.
For the Maroons, the focus will be on their start after that disastrous first half. But they will be pleased that they were able to rally and refused to be held to zero. Their kicking game was not at the same level as the Blues’ and they were unable to create a lot of attacking opportunities – even in the second half, they were relying on penalties and repeat sets for their momentum. They have plenty to work on, but they are Queensland and no doubt they will work on it and come out better and stronger than ever.
It sets up a tantalising decider, but before we get there, we have another Origin decider! Tomorrow night it’s Game 3 for the women in their first ever three-game Origin series and so far the teams are locked at 1-1. Join me tomorrow night as we see who will hold up the shield at the end of an intriguing series. Until then good night and make sure you stay hydrated for a huge game tomorrow!
Player of the Match: Mitchell Moses
Moses is a well deserved player of the match with an outstanding performance and kicking game tonight. He’s incredibly proud of his team and the win.
“I felt we just had a simple game plan, we stuck to it, got to our spots, kicked to the corners and played simple footy. It was a bit of silly stuff in the second half that probably hurt us. Probably should have went away with the game a bit more. We learn from that, take it into Game 3.”
He also revealed some of his preparation for playing on the G:
“I asked a couple of the AFL boys before I come out here just what it’s like to kick. Yeah, it’s a big swirl around here. Just had to come out early and get a feel of my surroundings.”
