Queensland brought greatness to State of Origin

Origin is much tougher than rugby union at any level.

You can't seriously think that Origin is anywhere near the level of All Blacks v Springboks, or the last four All Blacks v England games though. I do agree that Queensland has been an excellent team though

Mrs McCaw said "I would say that the All Blacks dominance over the last 11 years has been far superior." >>>Yes but that playing girlie football isn't it!

Sorry, that you gained that impression. But from what I remember when Tamou was initially selected for NSW, at the instigation of Ricky Stuart, reports actually had him a NZ player & he chose NSW over them. The issue with English, is one of the rorts that QLD have pulled over the years, including a PNG player in Adrian Lam. My understanding that the new rules apply that a person who plays his junior football after age 13 in whatever state, that is where is to play, yet another article had this player demanding a change as his family actually moved to NSW when he was 10 or something & he wanted to represent QLD & not NSW. The other problem that goes on is that some players who may play all their junior football & as is the case with Tamou who have parents from other overseas countries or grandparents is that they can choose to represent those countries, even though they have never lived there. I personally would not like to see English forced to play for NSW, like Hodges neither must like this country as neither of them I have noticed on every occasion that the national anthem is played sing it, their lips are sealed while most others only basically mimic it, which I find offensive. At least JT & usually Sam sing the anthem.

Queensland could not overcome the loss of the greatest player during the streak. ..mitchell pearce

I stopped watching a long time ago due to the overhyped garbage on channel 9 with Fatty & Ben ikin acting like a total pork chops about Queensland and Phil Gould blowing up about NSW every few minutes. Ray Warren stops me watching on Friday nights anyway. The whole State of Origin is for Queensland, the number of players that have been eligible for Queensland such as Papua New Guinea-born Adrian Lam and Fijian-born Lote Tuqiri, and Petero Civoniceva. New Zealanders Brad Thorn, Craig Smith, Tonie Carroll, and Karmichael Hunt. Samoan Ben Te'o, That is before we get into Greg Inglis from Bowraville who played his first senior football for Hunter Sports High after the age of 16 in the arrive alive cup. Similarly when a game is played in Melbourne it seems to be the one scheduled for Sydney and rarely if ever taken from Brisbane. Origin ruins the competition, it sidelines the best players for a number of weeks each year. Lets face it if NSW had won series on the trot the game would be played every second year on the Wednesday after e grand final.

"dominance seen only by Sir Don Bradman’s Invincibles" I feel privileged to watch this team over the last decade, but please - they play 3 times a year and while have won 8 in a row, many series were hard-fought victories. I would say that the All Blacks dominance over the last 11 years has been far superior. Gauging from the absolute winning %, as well as the manner in which they have won their matches - losing once since 2011!

I'm not sure if I've misread your opinion but it seems you think James Tamou should be playing for QLD on the basis he's playing for the cowboys? (Despite the fact he played all his juniors with the Roosters.) I've always been of the opinion origin should be strictly that origin - where you're born, as with the current eligibility rules i'd be donning the maroon (if I was a top class player) despite the fact I bleed blue. That said, there will never be a cut and dry solution, but I think the current eligibility rules (that were brought in after the inglis/tamou fiasco) are pretty on the money and really we should stop all whinging about players who got to pick there states under the old rules as these decisions are not going to be changed now. As a NSW fan, do I really want GI lining up for me knowing he'd rather be on the other side? probably not. Should a QLD fan be dirty that we've got 'Aussie Jim' even though he was born in NZ and plays senior footy with the cows? not when they've got Greggy running around for them when he was born south of the border.

Conor, your a bit strong on the "luck" factor as sides create their own luck as did NSW last night. This QLD side is one of the best of all time and will be the bench mark in future. We should all get away from the niggle and cheap remarks and just enjoy the game I think.

For me its been great to see great teams & some great football played over the years, sometimes even in those great years, the loser has been the better team but that's RL & SOO. However, the one quirk in it all is the name of the game as it is now, State of ORIGIN. While its primarily a NSW & QLD based game, with Victoria a small player with the Storm & New Zealand, well another country, the thing that still irks me is the way the Origin part has been twisted over the years, & its a bit the same when it comes to the RL World cup & internationals as well. Its one thing to try & manipulate players & that's what its all about, when NSW has a New Zealand Prop in the side, Ok, he's sworn allegiance to NSW, but has NZ heritage & plays with the Cowboys a QLD team, & I don't remember him playing in NSW either, maybe he did but, I don't remember. That along with so many others playing in the game to me is the part of SOO that I am not in favour of, especially when states & especially I think QLD target players & try the Ancesters..com web sites to see if a promising 5 year old is eligible to play tor them, & likely NSW does it as well. Then we have some players who by the current qualifications are deemed to be available for one state or the other, but they do not want to play for that state as Great Great grandma, on mums side lived in the other state, & I want to play for the other state. For me, rorting of a players status of qualification needs to be applied in a rule that cannot be abused by the whims or fancies of a player or a state. As kids grow up & follow a team they want to play for that team, but how many of them as they get older, change their support & eventually end up elsewhere, through a family move or other reason, recently a case like that was reported in the press, & the state whom the player wanted to represent was batting for him, & I do not know how it ended. So, with the mug now back South of the border, & with a number of players on both sides unlikely to play again in SOO owing to their age, I would hope that the NRL or controlling body will bring a SOO rule, that being a player is eligible for the state, where he plays football in. What needs to be considered is how its possible that a state based team can bring a young player often in his early teens from another state for that clubs benefit, to educate him & provide a base for his playing future, but then that player can end up representing another state. Maybe there is no real answer but, surely something better should be applied rather than the Gerry mander that is part of one states ethos.

what a load of bollocks, both sides have bought greatness to origin.