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Maroons come from behind to steal Game I

Written by: Matt Starkey
May 23, 2007 11:07pm
The Queensland Maroons have come from behind to defeat the New South Wales Blues by 25-18 in front of a record crowd of 52,498 in Game I of the 2007 State of Origin Series at Suncorp Stadium. Trailing 18-6 at halftime, Queensland dug deep to continue their imposing home ground record and take a 1-nil lead in the series. They now lead the all-time standings by 1 victory and 1 point. Moving onto the game itself, and all the pre-match hype centred around NSW halfback Jarrod Mullen, but it was another man with the same name that will steal all the headlines in tomorrow\'s newspapers and around the water coolers. Winger Jarryd Hayne had a bitter sweet night on debut, scoring an unbelievable try just before halftime but gifting QLD captain Darren Lockyer one under the posts in the 61st minute. With memories of Justin Hodges on debut, Hayne and effectively lost the game for NSW after flicking the ball back inside in search of fullback Anthony Minichiello only for it to fall in the lap of the Queensland captain who couldn’t believe his luck. In fact it was a tough night for all NSW debutants, with prop Brett White having limited game time after trainers were unable to stem the flow of blood from his nose. Kurt Gidley popped his left shoulder and Anthony Tupou probably didn’t spend as much time on the field as he would have hoped. Of the five, Mullen performed the best, with some good touches behind a pack that held their own for the first 60 minutes before struggling for traction late in the game. The opening exchanges were fiery, with both sides handing out punishment at will. But the first try was all finesse, with halfback Johnathan Thurston delivering a crisp chip to Greg Inglis on the eastern wing to score untouched, with NSW winger Matt King caught well out of position. The Blues rallied however, with five-eighth Braith Anasta taking on the line in the 10th minute, beating Tonie Carroll and Petero Civoniceva before offloading to Nathan Hindmarsh who crashed over. Soon after it looked like the Maroons would hit back, with Bell given the ball in space only to drop it over the line. This lead to the first big turnaround in the game with the Blues travelling 100 metres, aided by a penalty, to score. It was a terrific try. Danny Buderus fed Mullen who was standing very deep. Decoys went inside and out with Mullen passing to lock Andrew Ryan who was floating wide. Queensland’s defence misread the situation and Ryan showed quick hands to get the ball to an unmarked Matt Cooper, who strolled over the line with Hayne on his outside to make the score 12-6 with Jamie Lyon’s conversion. Queensland were again unlucky a short while later when a flat ball from dummy half Cameron Smith found a rampaging Steve Price only for it to be called forward. You could tell at that stage that Queensland’s heads went down and Jamie Lyon added a penalty goal in the 35th minute in what seemed to be the last points of the half. But with seconds remaining on the clock, Brent Tate was bringing the ball out of his half and chanced his hand (or foot rather) with a kick through on the halfway line. Hayne trapped it in his feet then picked up the ball and scooted down field. The cover coming across forced Hayne to kick ahead and he left the field of play before winning the race to the ball and scoring a truly sensational try. Tate in particular would have been gutted, but with Lyon missing the goal it only pushed the lead out to 18-6. It was the last time NSW would score however. Whatever was said at halftime had the desired affect for QLD, but unfortunately for NSW they failed to show up, carding a very sub-par performance. Ten minutes in the Maroons scored through Inglis again. After a quiet first half, Lockyer got involved, taking the ball to the line with NSW misreading the play. He found Karmichael Hunt on the outside who dished to a flying Inglis and the Maroons drew within six points. Shortly after Price scored the equaliser next to the posts, after Berrigan got into dummy half and delivered a carbon copy of the pass disallowed in the first half. With the scores locked at 18-all and 20 minutes remaining on the clock, the packed Suncorp Stadium was on the edge of their seats anticipating another cliff hanger. But they didn’t have to wait long… Cameron Smith got a kick away out of acting half which travelled down to Hayne\'s wing and at one point looked like it might find touch. Not realising Smith kicked from outside his own 40, Hayne played at the ball only to put himself in a compromising position near the sideline. He decided to try and avoid going into touch but committed the cardinal sin of throwing the ball on your own goal line, with the stray pass offering fullback Anthony Minichiello absolutely no chance of cleaning it up. Lockyer was johnny-on-the-spot and he gleefully accepted the ball and ran it around under the posts. From that point you could see the wind go out of the sails for the Blues and Thurston’s field goal with 11 minutes remaining closed the first chapter on State of Origin for 2007. Some injury concerns came out of the game with a patella tendon tear to Antonio Kaufusi which will require surgery. As mentioned earlier, Kurt Gidley popped his left shoulder and further tests will have to be carried out. Willie Mason also had a hamstring strain, which kept him from the field for some period of time. On the judiciary front, Tonie Carroll will be looked at for two high tackles, as will Dallas Johnson and Nate Myles for a lifting tackle. State of Origin I - Full Time :: May 23rd, 2007 08:00 PM Venue: Suncorp Stadium Referee: Paul Simpkins Crowd: 52,498 Queensland 25 Tries: Greg Inglis (2), Steve Price, Darren Lockyer Goals: Johnathan Thurston (4/4) Field Goals: Johnathan Thurston (1/1) def. New South Wales 18 Tries: Nathan Hindmarsh, Matt Cooper, Jarryd Hayne Goals: Jamie Lyon (3/4) LeagueUnlimited.com Player of the Match 3 Points: Steve Price 2 Points: Johnathan Thurston 1 Point: Darren Lockyer League Unlimited Live Commentary Mild but an otherwise perfect night up here in Brisbane for Game I of the 2007 State of Origin Series. Myles into the starting line-up after Webb\'s withdrawal. Teams are as follows: Maroons: Hunt, Tate, Bell, Hodges, Inglis, Lockyer (c), Thurston, Civoniceva, Smith, Price, Myles, Carroll, Johnson Interchange: Berrigan, Lillyman, Costigan, Kaufusi Blues: Minichiello, Hayne, Lyon, Cooper, King, Anasta, Mullen, Kite, Buderus (c), White, Mason, Hindmarsh, Ryan Interchange: Simpson, Bailey, Tupou, Gidley The players are now on the field. We are awaiting the National Anthem. 1 min: Queensland kick-off and we are underway! 1 min: Brett White got crunched by Dallas Johnson in the first set of six. Hunt copped some treatment from the kick return as well. 2 min: QLD get the first penalty of the night with NSW encroaching too early. 3 min: QLD in good field position. Carroll makes a half break. Maroons press the Blues line. 3 min: TRY Queensland The Maroons are in first tonight. After some pressure on the Blues line, Smith gives a clean ball to Thurston who puts it up in the corner for Inglis to snatch the ball untouched. King was caught hopelessly out of position. Thurston curls it in from the sideline like only he can! Conversion attempt by Johnathan Thurston successful. Queensland 6-0 5 min: Blues restart with a deep kick. 6 min: Carroll getting involved early. 6 min: Minichiello and Hayne have their first touches. The game is being played at a very fast pace as the Blues find some room down King\'s corner. 7 min: Mullen offers an easy take for Hunt in the in-goal. Everything going QLD\'s way at this stage. 8 min: A short ball from Thurston goes astray and Mullen comes up with it. Thurston is the focus of the Maroon attack early on, no sign of Lockyer just yet. Blues in good field position. 9 min: Blues trap Inglis in goal after Anasta grubbers into the in-goal and Minichiello and King clean up. QLD respond with a 60m drop kick from Lockyer. 10 min: Blues get a penalty after Myles lifts White. 10 min: TRY New South Wales Try to the Blues! Anasta takes the ball to the line, gets through Carroll and Civoniceva. He finds Hindmarsh haring down and gives a ball 7m out from the line. Hindmarsh carries Hodges and Hunt over the stripe to score. Slight hint of a forward ball from Anasta and a question mark over the put down as well. Lyon converts and we\'re locked up. Conversion attempt by Jamie Lyon successful. 6 all 13 min: White has blood pouring out of his snoz. 14 min: QLD working it out from their half, Thurston makes a half break. Blues get another penalty after Inglis is ruled offside. 15 min: Bailey on the field for White. 15 min: Hunt takes a bomb from Mullen and runs 20m before being cut down. They can\'t stop the blood coming out of White\'s nose. 16 min: Breather for the players here as Thurston finds the line deep in NSW territory. 17 min: King just got smashed by Carroll and Hunt. Some very physical stuff out there. 17 min: Kite knocks-on in the play the ball and gifts QLD great field position. 18 min: Absolute coach-killer here as Bell drops the ball with the line wide open. Terrible handling there. Now QLD give a penalty away and all the pressure is off. Huge turnaround. 20 min: TRY New South Wales Another great try here to the Blues. Buderus feeds Mullen who is very deep. Decoys go through and Mullen finds Ryan at the line who draws and passes to Cooper who is unmarked and has Hayne on the outside. Cooper grounds the ball about 10m in and Lyon makes no mistake with the conversion. Huge turnaround after Bell\'s dropped ball. Conversion attempt by Jamie Lyon successful. New South Wales 12-6 22 min: A bit of wind has gone out of QLD\'s sails her as the Blues start to ruck it up and make good yards. 23 min: Hunt catches a beauty then returns it hard to the line. No respect for his body that young man. QLD look a bit flat here. 24 min: Bailey loses the ball in a stiff tackle by Price; QLD on the attack. 25 min: Simpson and Tupou are on the field, looks like Hindmarsh and Kite are off. Berrigan is on for Johnson. 26 min: Unforgivable! Buderus kicks out on the field. Scrum at halfway. Hunt has gone to wing with Inglis at fullback. 27 min: Huge decision here! Smith gives a flat pass out of dummy half and Price crashes over. Simpkins has called it back for a forward pass, very harsh call indeed! 30 min: QLD get a penalty on halfway for a strip. Maroons are on the attack now. 30 min: Costigan is on the field for Carroll. Lillyman about to enter the fray. 31 min: Thurston dribbles in the in-goal and King just gets to it. King is looking very out of position tonight. Drop out to the Blues goes 50m on the fly. 31 min: Maroons starting to warm up in the physical stakes again. A few Blues have been smashed with Price and Costigan dishing out the punishment. 32 min: Cameron Smith held up over the line on the last tackle. The Blues are now camped down their end. 34 min: QLD look more enterprising in attack but Inglis puts an easy one down and hands possession back. 35 min: Mason off the field with a hamstring problem. NSW get a penalty in QLD territory after Thurston gets in trouble with an obstruction. 36 min: PENALTY GOAL New South Wales Lyon adds two points from the ensuing penalty. Blues take an 8-point lead. New South Wales 14-6 39 min: First half winding down here with the players eyeing off the sheds. 40 min: Mullen narrowly misses a 40-20 with a sharp kick. 40 min: Checking a try to Hayne here, unbelievable stuff! 40 min: TRY New South Wales Hayne has come up with an absolute gem here. Tate kicks ahead on the last play, Hayne traps it in his feet, regathers, turns-toe and sets off for the line. He disposes of Hodges, chips ahead as Hunt comes across, leaves the field of play then regathers to score with a brilliant bounce. Lyon misses the goal from the sideline, but it\'s a huge try right on halftime and an absolute heartbreaker for QLD coach Mal Meninga. Tate must be feeling like a goose right now. Conversion attempt by Jamie Lyon unsuccessful. New South Wales 18-6 40 min: QLD have it all to do here after Hayne\'s try right on half time. Lockyer needs to get more involved and start running the ball more. They must feel gutted after Price\'s try was pulled back as well. NSW are making the most of their opportunities and QLD will need to start taking a few chances in the second half. You can never, ever write-off the Maroons, with this game still anyone\'s. The opening 10-15 minutes of the second half will be crucial. 41 min: NSW restart proceedings in the second half. 42 min: Gidley starting to warm up. 43 min: QLD on the attack after NSW lose the ball. A grubber by Thurston goes dead as Minichiello watches it roll over the line. 44 min: Hayne returns an in-field kick well, making 20m. 45 min: Mullen tries a little chip over the top but Tate cleans up, then loses it and NSW have a great opportunity here. 46 min: This time Mullen lets them off the hook with a kick in-goal that Inglis fields easily on the full. 48 min: Minichiello makes a good dash, he\'s playing well. Anasta hoists the ball and Hunt takes it on the full again. The Blues aren\'t threatening them too much at the moment but they are at least controlling the ball. 49 min: Kaufusi has gone down after being tackled from the side by Lyon. It looks to be a knee or ankle problem and he\'s getting walked off the field. I\'d say he\'s unlikely to play any further part. 50 min: Maroons get a penalty as the Blues enact an obstruction. QLD on the attack. 50 min: TRY Queensland Beautiful try here to the Maroons. Lockyer gets the ball, runs to the line, decoys either side, gets the ball to Hunt who draws King and Inglis is in for his second. Thurston repeats the curl from the sideline and the Maroons are coming back. Conversion attempt by Johnathan Thurston successful. New South Wales 18-12 53 min: Gidley is on for Buderus. 54 min: QLD in a strong attacking position here but another forward pass from Hodges to Tate is called. This one looks pretty far forward. Blues are struggling to cope with their attacking options. 55 min: White finally gets back on the field. 56 min: Relieving penalty to the Maroons who were trapped in their own half. White is bleeding again, the Blues have a man out of the line. 57 min: QLD get another six in Blues territory. They are peppering the line. 59 min: TRY Queensland Price gets over the line again, this time it\'s given. Berrigan gets into dummy half and the big prop runs at the chalk with few people in front of him. He scored next to the posts which is important as Thurston adds the extras easily. Conversion attempt by Johnathan Thurston successful. 18 all 61 min: TRY Queensland Tragedy has struck! A great kick from Smith sees Hayne clean up on the touch line but he foolishly throws it inside to Minichiello who has no play at the ball. Darren Lockyer is there to clean up and he runs it under the posts. Shades of Justin Hodges. Thurston converts and the Maroons are in front again. Conversion attempt by Johnathan Thurston successful. Queensland 24-18 63 min: Hayne gets slapped again from a kick return. 66 min: A kick by Thurston goes dead after a sustained attack by QLD. The ball nearly hit the cross-bar ala Lewis/Dowling. 67 min: Lillyman has felled Hayne, who\'s having a rough 10 minutes. Blues on the attack. 68 min: Huge tackle by Tate on Mason forces a mistake. Massive play. 69 min: FIELD GOAL Queensland Price is having a huge game and his work gets them into good field position. Thurston snaps a field goal from 30m out and the home team leads by 7. Queensland 25-18 71 min: Gidley is off with a dislocated shoulder. 74 min: A bit of a lull in the game here with a Lockyer kick into the in-goal fielded easily. NSW look like they\'ve run out of puff though. 75 min: Price gets in one of his trademark charge-downs and the Maroons are in possession. They trap the Blues in-goal and will have another shot at them. 77 min: QLD spill it and the Blues have the ball back. Crowd 52,498. 79 min: Teams winding down here as the result looks set to remain. 80 min: Lockyer finds touch with the last play of the night. 80 min: QLD wrap up Game I in front of a full house up here at Suncorp Stadium with a come from behind victory.

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