Highlights from the first half of State of Origin II between New South Wales and Queensland at ANZ Stadium on Wednesday:
2nd: Queensland signal their intent, with Cooper Cronk making the first line-break of the match, but his kick is defused by Brett Stewart.
13th minute: Stewart makes a mess of a Cronk kick and almost concedes a try to Dave Taylor, but manages to ground the ball just in time. Stewart breathes a huge sigh of relief, though replays show Taylor didn’t ground the ball.
19th: Brent Tate picks up an ankle injury but battles on.
24th: Billy Slater requires attention after picking a left knee injury following a Ben Creagh tackle. Paul Gallen also struggling with a knee injury.
25th: Brett Stewart cracks the Queensland defence, busting through a tackle from Johnathan Thurston and Slater. Video referee awards the opening try, but Todd Carney’s conversion is well wide. 4-0 NSW.
30th: NSW pile on more pressure, but Carney’s cross-field bomb is defused masterfully by Tate.
40th: Queensland take an unlikely halftime lead. Cronk’s bomb is uncontested by Akuila Uate and the ball ends up with bench prop Ben Hannant who scores under the sticks. Thurston converts. 6-4 QLD.
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