Squaring up at Suncorp: Blues look to channel the Class of '98

History tells us that winning any Origin game in Brisbane is hard enough for New South Wales, but trying to keep a series alive at The Cauldron after losing Game One has proved all but impossible.

The men from south of the border headed north to enemy territory for Game Two in 1988, 2010 and 2016 having lost the opener and came away with their tail between their legs and the series gone.

Only once, in 1998, have NSW managed to recover from defeat in Game One to square the ledger in Brisbane, winning 26-10 under the inspirational captaincy of Laurie Daley and the unique motivational stylings of the late Tommy Raudonikis.

As Brad Fittler and his men look to defy the odds and send the 2023 series to a decider in Sydney, former Blues winger Rod Wishart believes a sprinkle of Tommy’s magic dust wouldn’t go astray before next Wednesday.

“What Tommy lacked in the technical side he more than made up for with the pride and passion and what it meant to put on the Blues jumper and he instilled that in everyone,” said Wishart, who played 22 Origins for NSW between 1990-98.

“When we asked him what defensive pattern he was looking for he said, ‘there’s only one way to tackle in Origin, you just go up and smash them’. It might sound simplistic but something about that is 100 percent true.

“Tommy wasn’t intimidated by going to Queensland to try and win the second game. We still drove past the Caxton Hotel in those days and we soaked it up.

“We were keen to drive past the pub, that was all part of it. We knew we were there on a mission.

“We had an uncomplicated game plan based on effort and what it meant to be wearing the jumper. 

You have a responsibility because there’s so many people who would die to be out there where we are.

Former Blues winger Rod Wishart

The game plan will be somewhat more intricate and the team bus won’t be running the gauntlet past the Caxton, but Wishart is adamant his old teammate Fittler won’t stray too far from the mantra that carried the Blues to six series victories in the 90s under Phil Gould, Raudonikis and Jack Gibson.

“Freddy played through the 90s under all those coaches who knew what it meant to play for NSW,” said Wishart.

“Guys like Joey [Andrew Johns] and Mary [Paul McGregor] and Greg Alexander, they played with pride and passion and they will pass it on. I’m sure they will draw on the history in the build-up.

“The Maroons will do the same with Billy Slater and their assistant coaches who were part of their golden era [2006-13] – that’s what makes Origin so special having all those guys still involved and sharing their stories.

“The message from Freddy has to be ‘don’t over complicate it’. Have confidence in your ability, get down to basics and have faith that you will make the right decision at the right time.

“You can’t change the result [from Adelaide] but you can maintain your positive attitude... it’s not as if Queensland were a better team in Game One.

“It was the same for us back in ’98, the Maroons only got us by a point in Sydney so we were confident we could hit back in the second game.

“It makes it even more challenging to play at Suncorp with the atmosphere up there. They might not throw beer cans or oranges at them anymore but there will still be plenty of noise and it will fire the Blues up. No player will be overawed by playing at Suncorp.”

Since Immortal Arthur Beetson led the Maroons to victory over Tommy’s Blues in the first ever State of Origin match in 1980, the ledger at Lang Park/Suncorp Stadium stands at 37-20 in Queensland’s favour with one draw.

Regardless of whether it’s Game One, Two or Three, life doesn’t get much tougher for a visiting Blue than confronting 50,000 passionate Maroons fans drinking their own beer in their own backyard, but on June 5, 1998, Wishart and his Blues crew showed they were made of the right stuff.

After conceding an early try to Wendell Sailor off an Allan Langer kick, the Blues steadied and hit back through Adam MacDougall after the Maroons had allowed a Johns bomb to bounce.

A quick-fire double to McGregor and a trademark Fittler try from close range had the Blues in control 20-6 by half-time before Tim Brasher crossed four minutes after the break to put the result beyond doubt.

Having arrived at Suncorp in a desperate fight for survival, the Blues had passed the ultimate test of ticker and temperament, but it’s a task that had proved too much a decade earlier for Wayne Pearce’s NSW outfit.

With the three-game series still in its infancy, the Blues lost Game One in Sydney before heading to the old Lang Park to confront The King, Alfie, Fatty and Geno, putting up a brave fight before succumbing 16-6. Series over.

In 2010, with the Maroons in the midst of Origin’s greatest ever period of dominance, it was Darren Lockyer, Johnathan Thurston, Cameron Smith and Slater leading Queensland to a 34-6 win in Game Two. Series over.

Come 2016 and the Blues headed to Brisbane full of hope after a narrow 6-4 loss at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium in the opener but again felt the full fury of Suncorp as a Dane Gagai hat-trick catapulted the Maroons to a 26-16 win. Series over.

And while history says Queensland go 2-0 up on Wednesday night and wrap up a third series win in four years, Rod Wishart says the spirit of Tommy and a willingness to embrace the challenge can see the Blues set up a decider back on their own patch on July 12.