In the end, Wayne Bennett’s coaching mastery, his innate ability to inspire his players and get the best out of what he has at his disposal, trumped all else at Adelaide Oval, where his inexperienced and injury-depleted Queensland side staged a comeback for the ages to snatch victory in the 2020 State of Origin series opener.
Down 10-0 at half-time following tries from New South Wales’ Damian Cook and Josh Addo Carr, the game appeared, on the face of it, to be running to the form book. The Blues had arrived in South Australia as heavy favourites to kick off their bid for a three-peat with victory on neutral territory, before heading back to Sydney to wrap things up in next week’s game two.
But if 2020 has taught us anything, it is to expect the unexpected, and the only thing guaranteed on Wednesday was that the night would end with a result – unlike in other parts of the world, where slightly more serious events were simultaneously playing out.
It went Queensland’s way after Bennett’s magic rubbed off on his players in the dressing rooms at the break, from where they emerged a different proposition. They had enjoyed plenty of ball during the first half, but lacked a cutting edge and were unable to convert their possession into points when faced with some dogged NSW defending.
That changed in the second half and what transpired will go down in Origin history as one of the great comebacks. AJ Brimson, one of eight Maroon debutants on the night, signalled the turning of the tide 10 minutes in as he ran onto an unorthodox kick from the unlikely boot of Kurt Capewell to touch down before Xavier Coates benefitted from a Dane Gagai break to put Queensland ahead for the first time just four minutes later.
Cameron Munster, who had shaken off a knee niggle to play, then appeared to have iced the win with a 66th-minute effort, after the Melbourne Storm five-eighth seized upon a loose Daniel Tupou pass and held off Cook to open up an eight-point lead. The fire in Blues bellies was not quite extinguished yet, and Addo-Carr went over in the corner for his second of the night to give NSW some hope. But when Nathan Cleary’s kick for extras went inches wide, a four-point margin remained and with the missed attempt went the opportunity to potentially level the score in the dying moments with a drop goal.
New South Wales were left shell-shocked. But the truth is, there should be little surprise about the result. Bennett has form for this type of escapade – he performed a similarly miraculous feat in 2001, when he inspired a series win after having named 10 debutants in one game. Having returned to the Origin fold, he brought in Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga as an assistant last month, and the dream coaching team had the desired effect.
“I never have been coached by Wayne before and he has a presence about him,” man-of-the-match and Queensland captain Daly Cherry-Evans said. “Mal, I have been lucky enough to be coached by him and he definitely has a presence amongst him. It is not unnerving or unsettling but it makes you comfortable and assure of yourself. We had that tonight.”
Already contending with a hefty injury list, with heavyweights Michael Morgan, Moses Mbye and Kalyn Ponga among those scratched, the Maroons were dealt a further blow just an hour before kick-off. Brenko Lee might not have been as big a miss as the aforementioned trio but the Melbourne centre’s calf problem forced Bennett to engage in some last-minute tinkering. Phillip Sami started on the wing, with Kurt Capewell and Dane Gagai in the centres.
It left Queensland with a grand total of eight debutants. NSW chipped in with three of their own, in keeping with a night of firsts – it was the first Origin series to be played after the NRL season had concluded, and the first time Adelaide had hosted an Origin clash.
Brad Fittler, the NSW coach, was left to rue his side’s first-half performance, despite opening up a lead before the break.
“I felt like we didn’t do enough in the first half,” he says. “We defended awesome and pushed Queensland away a few times. We didn’t get a kick in the first 10 minutes. The tries came from a couple of nice bits of play. I just don’t think we at all dragged Queensland of any energy.
“Then in the second half I thought that their halves controlled their kicking so well ... it was a pretty strong breeze at the northern end. We just couldn’t get out of trouble.”
A Queensland win at ANZ Stadium next Wednesday would see the Maroons wrest back the State of Origin trophy they last won in 2017. The final game of the 2020 series will be played in Brisbane a week after that, when Bennett is already assured of a hero’s welcome back on home turf.
