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State of Origin Game 2 crystal ball predictions: Picking the winner, man of the match and much more

Poor player behaviour shouldn't surprise us. (Photo: AAP)
20th June, 2017
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State of Origin Game 2 is upon us in what could prove to be a series-deciding encounter. Will NSW secure the match and the series? Or will the old guard come back with some fight and force a Game 3 decider?

To find out, we’ve put a stack of questions tio our stable of rugby league experts, as well as a few other guys who know a thing or two about the game. Here’s how they think the game is going to play out:

State of Origin 2 coverage
» Match report: Maroons win to force series decider
» Five talking points from Queensland’s last-gasp win
» Check out all the highlights from the thrilling Game 2
» WATCH: Andrew Johns unleashes a furious rant about the Blues’ woeful second half

Tim Gore (Roar Expert)

Who will win: Queensland
Margin: 8 points
Player of the match: Johnathan Thurston
First try scorer: Blake Ferguson
One thing that definitely will happen: a great, no holds barred match.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: a high penalty count.

Ryan O’Connell (Roar Expert)

Who will win: Queensland
Margin: 6 points
Player of the match: Johnathan Thurston
First try scorer: Darius Boyd
One thing that definitely will happen: Billy Slater will make the decision not to pick him in the opening game look extremely foolish.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: A punch. Unfortunately.

Mary Konstantopoulos (Roar Expert)

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Who will win: Blues
Margin: 2 points
Player of the match: Jarryd Hayne
First try scorer: James Tedesco
One thing that definitely will happen: Tim Glasby will be one of the Maroons best players and everyone in NSW will remember his name.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: Klemmer and Fifita will make sure Coen Hess won’t put any big hits on the NSW playmakers.

James Tedesco NSW Blues State of Origin NRL Rugby League 2017

(AAP Image/Dave Hunt)

Matt Cleary (Roar Expert)

Who will win: NSW
Margin: 18 points
Player of the match: Andrew Fifita
First try scorer: Andrew Fifita
One thing that definitely will happen: Huge NSW forwards will power through the Maroons D-line and on the back of quick play-the-ball Blues halves and tricky ones – James Tedesco – will make hay.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: Kick-off at 8:06.

Tom Rock (Roar Expert)

Who will win: New South Wales
Margin: In a dour slugfest, the Blues will triumph 8-6.
Player of the match: Wade Graham’s constant harassment of Thurston and Cronk will be the difference between the teams.
First try scorer: Valentine Holmes will do his best Darius Boyd impression, and flop over for Queensland’s only four-pointer of the night.
One thing that definitely will happen: Queensland will receive the lion’s share of the 50/50 calls, as they do every series.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: New South Wales won’t be caught off-guard by a Queensland ambush. We’re ready.

Dane Eldridge (Roar Expert)

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Who will win: Queensland
Margin: 3 points
Player of the match: Vengeful discard Billy Slater
First try scorer: Valentine Holmes
One thing that definitely will happen: Tim Glasby delivers a fiery display off the bench after being made to produce an accreditation pass to take the field
One thing that definitely won’t happen: Mitchell Pearce won’t be blamed for something. I’m tipping rising sea levels.

Billy Slater runs the ball for the Maroons in State of Origin

(AAP Image/Julian Smith)

Dan Liebke (Roar Expert)

Who will win: Queensland
Margin: 40 points
Player of the match: James Tedesco (astonishingly)
First Try Scorer: James Tedesco
One thing that definitely will happen: Paul ‘Fatty’ Vautin will talk in hushed tones to somebody in the Queensland dressing room
One thing that definitely won’t happen: A halftime tribute to Ryan Girdler

Scott Pryde (Roar Guru and Live Blogger)

Who will win: Queensland
Margin: 4 points
Player of the match: Johnathan Thurston. Who else? Seriously.
First try scorer: Josh Dugan from a James Maloney crossfield kick.
One thing that definitely will happen: Low-scoring. I said this for the first game of course, but in Sydney with the dew factor and the Maroons desperately trying to get a win using any and all means, there won’t be many points unless the Maroons skip away at the end.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: Mitchell Pearce playing well again. He did it once, but with Thurston and Slater back and the Maroons desperate, it could get ugly for Pearce.

More State of Origin 2
» The two areas where Game 2 will be won and lost
» The most in-depth Origin 2 preview on the internet
» Prichard: How the refs will influence State of Origin 2
» Origin 2 expert tips and predictions
» State of Origin kick-off time bingo: When will Game 2 actually start?

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BJ Conkey (Roar Editor)

Who will win: New South Wales
Margin: 8 points
Player of the match: James Tedesco
First try scorer: Jarryd Hayne
One thing that definitely will happen: A controversial decision after a controversy-free Game 1.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: A blowout scoreline.

Daniel Jeffrey (Roar Editor)

Who will win: Queensland
Margin: 4 points
Player of the match: Cameron Smith. No way he’s playing as poorly as he did in Game 1.
First try scorer: Valentine Holmes
One thing that definitely will happen: Billy Slater, Valentine Holmes, Coen Hess and Jarrod Wallace will make the selectors look like fools for not picking them in Game 1.
One thing that definitely won’t happen: Andrew Fifita to go a second straight Origin game without a brain-snap.

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