Former NSW skipper Danny Buderus has urged the Blues embrace the opportunity to write their names into State of Origin folklore at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday night.
Buderus was the last man to captain NSW to victory in a decider in Queensland when he led the side to a 32-10 victory in 2005.
Success in Brisbane has been hard to come by for the Blues, with the Maroons winning nine of the past ten deciders played north of the border. The team's only wins came in 1994 and 2005.
Buderus has been waiting 19 long years for a side to repeat the feat and backed the current NSW team to create history on Wednesday night.
"If you do something that is highly unlikely, you've got to go and earn it," Buderus told NRL.com. "If you go and do something not many people have done you'll always have that special bond with the guys you took the field with and the staff you did it with.
"Belief is everything going up there. They'll be instilling that in their preparation and messaging. This current squad has players who have experienced this environment before and haven't come out on the right side of the ledger but they'll be carrying that belief into Game Three."
The Blues 2005 victory has long been remembered for Andrew Johns' heroics after he produced two flawless performances to help NSW recover from a Game One loss.
Match: Maroons v Blues
Game 3 -
home Team
Maroons
away Team
Blues
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Ricky Stuart's side had their hearts broken in the series opener, Brett Kimmorley throwing an intercept to Matt Bowen who raced away to claim a Queensland golden point victory.
Johns' return after Trent Barrett broke down at training provided a major confidence boost but winger Matt King said the foundation for the win was formed during the team's week in camp.
"The biggest thing I remember is we were a really galvanised group heading up there with full belief," King told NRL.com. "Andrew Johns in the team helps that but people look at it and go 'they had Joey, that's why they won', but it wasn't about that.
"It was about a collective group believing in each other and a collective group believing in defence."
King scored a hat-trick in the Game Three win, a try shortly after half-time pushing his team out to a 24-0 lead and breaking the Queensland spirit in the process.
The Blues added two more tries as they rolled on to a 32-10 victory and their third-straight State of Origin series win.
The former Melbourne star is now a member of the Blues coaching staff and has been eager to ensure the lessons of 2005 have been passed on to the current squad.
King's hat-trick in the 2005 decider
"We both lost Game One, we win Game Two and then head up to Brisbane to sort it all out," King said. "There are some things I've learnt that I've shared with the boys around the belief we had in each other and how we wanted to defend.
"We saw the mentality was there in Game One [this year]. If you look at the scoreboard it wasn't but if you watch the game closely, you know there was a spirit there.
"That spirit held through in Game Two and we were able to put it together. Now it's about taking the lessons which were positive and negative from Game Two and getting better."
The parallels between the 2005 team and the current squad run deep, with the Blues dropping the opening game before coming roaring back in the second.
There was also a change of halfback after Origin I, though this time it was a selection switch as Mitchell Moses replaced Nicho Hynes.
Buderus said a new No.7 changes the dynamic of the team and backed Moses to replicate the five-star performance he produced at the MCG.
"The seven determines the personality and character of the team and how you play," Buderus said. "There was a lot of pressure on Mitchell Moses so he had to stand tall [in Game Two] and he did a great job.
"Everyone supported his kicking game, his kick chase and put him in a position to allow his kicking game to thrive."
While the Blues ultimately won by 22 points in the 2005 decider, the win did not come easy.
Queensland spent much of the opening 20 minutes on the attack and had NSW scrambling to prevent an early try. The Blues eventually turned the tide and rolled down the field before five-eighth Braith Anasta scored the opening try of the match.
Buderus knew in the moment how important the early defensive stand was and said there will come a point in Wednesday night's decider when the team's character will be tested.
"You get nothing given to you at Suncorp Stadium," he said. "It's all earned. It's a hostile environment but that's what Origin is all about.
"We knew we had to absorb something to earn the right to get into the position to win the game. The start was the best thing that could happen to us. We had to nullify everything Queensland threw at us and keep that blue wall in front of them.
"We broke their spirit in that regard and that's how we're going to have to win it on Wednesday night. We're going to have to go through something to come out the other side."
It may have been 19 years, but the 2005 side remembers the victory like it was yesterday.
The players still regularly discuss the win, with the State of Origin series an annual reminder of their shared place in rugby league history.
Now, the legends of 2005 have declared, it is time to welcome a new team into the exclusive club.
"This is their opportunity to etch their names into Origin folklore," Craig Fitzgibbon said. "It's pretty hard to do but getting it done would be an awesome achievement."
