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UPDATE: State of Origin Game 2 kicked off at 7:54pm (AEST).
Game 2 of the 2021 State of Origin series is scheduled for kick-off at 7:50pm (AEST) tonight. However, unless you’re new to the world of Origin, you’ll know that’s about as likely as Paul Green strapping on the boots at half-time and muttering “Fine, I’ll do it myself”.
More Origin 2
» REPORT: Blues stifle Maroons to claim series
» TALKING POINTS: Where do Queensland go from here?
» Origin 2, as it happened: Play-by-play commentary
» VIDEO: Latrell’s amazing intercept try
» VIDEO: Trbojevic’s sensational try-saver on Coates
For many years, kick-off times for Origin were basically like the Pirates Code in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies: more guidelines than actual rules. However, recent seasons have seen players and referees move closer and closer to the dream of actually starting a match right on time.
Game 1 of the 2021 series was the closest yet, kicking off at 8:11pm, just one minute behind schedule. However, there were a number of factors that contributed to this, most notably the absence of a curtain-raiser and featuring The Veronicas as the sole pre-match entertainment ticket.
Game day at Suncorp Stadium was set to begin with Queensland Police taking on NSW police in the curtain-raiser. However, due to border closures caused by Sydney’s COVID-19 outbreak, that match has been scrapped.
In better news, Brisbane pop group Sheppard will still be adding Origin pre-match entertainment to their growing event list, having performed at the Gabba for last year’s AFL grand final. They’re scheduled to begin at around 7pm (AEST), 50 minutes before kick-off.
The Welcome to Country and National Anthem usually take place around five minutes before kick-off, so we should know by then whether the match will actually begin on time.
Will we see Origin 2 take that last step towards starting on schedule, or will rugby league fans again be made to wait for release?
Be sure to pop your predicted start time in the form below, and leave a comment with your thoughts. We’ll publish the results of the the State of Origin kick-off bingo poll around an hour before kick-off; and once the game does eventually get underway, we’ll pop the actual kick-off time in here as well.
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