State of Origin III player ratings

A HUGE risk taken by NSW cost the visitors a bucketload but Boyd Cordner wasn’t the only Origin flop. Every player rated here.

Did Boyd Cordner’s will to play cost the Blues?

WELL, there you have it. The Queensland reign of terror continues.

The Maroons gave NSW nothing in the first half while utterly dominating in attack, forcing the visitors into a state of disrepair as they struggled to find answers to the Storm-heavy spine taking over the match.

The Blues unit looked a shadow of what it produced in Game 1 as Queensland ran rampant with line breaks and freak kicks to claim victory. The home side eventually took the match 22-6, sending NSW fans billowing out of Suncorp Stadium before the final siren sounded.

The Blues took a risk by selecting Boyd Cordner despite his preparation being hindered due to a calf injury. His handling let him down a couple of times and he mistimed several of his runs as he failed to combine with his playmakers on the edge.

Cameron Munster also ran around him to set up Valentine Holmes’ third try of the night in a sign the NSW skipper may not have been entirely prepared to take the field on Wednesday night.

Take a look at who starred and who flopped in one of the most anticipated Origin deciders in history.

NEW SOUTH WALES

1. JAMES TEDESCO

Showed off his brilliant defence early on. Scooped up a dangerous grubber from Josh McGuire in the first half which would have been a certain try otherwise. Dropped a rare high ball but was largely safe if not spectacular. 6.5

2. BRETT MORRIS

Thwarted Queensland with a brilliant piece of defence to pressure Cooper Cronk into fumbling the ball as he went over for a try. Made one line break, six tackles and ran for 82m. 7

3 . JOSH DUGAN

Put NSW on the board early in the second half with a miracle grab on the right wing. Helped the Blues retake some momentum as hope appeared to slip away. Only try for NSW all night. 6.5

4. JARRYD HAYNE

Did well under the high ball with a number of handy grabs under pressure. Was knocked by Cooper Cronk in a controversial chase as referees refused to pay NSW the penalty. 6.5

5. BLAKE FERGUSON

Ran solid metres for the Blues all night. Two tackle busts helped NSW break Queensland’s defence but it wasn’t enough to make a serious impact without support from his teammates. Made just two tackles all night. 6

6. JAMES MALONEY

Helped his side with clever passing early in the night. Had fans screaming with a brilliant chase to stop Tim Glasby running over for a debut Origin try. Tried emulating Cronk’s perfect kick to set up a try on the left wing but butchered it. 6

7. MITCHELL PEARCE

Kicking wasn’t up to Cronk’s standard and it showed. Was also easily palmed off by Valentine Holmes as he ran over for Queensland’s first try of the night. 5.5

8. AARON WOODS

Ran the ball well all night making 75m but failed to make any serious impact. Was strong in defence with 22 tackles in the front row. 5.5

9. NATHAN PEATS

Played the unfaltering workhorse role once again. Fed the ball to the back line well all night and played a handy role in defence. Topped the NSW tackle list with 39, 11 more than the next best. 7

10. ANDREW FIFITA

Strong hit-ups all night but failed to have the same impact as he did earlier in the series. NSW dearly needed another Game 1 performance from the Sharks destroyer. 5.5

11. BOYD CORDNER

Ran for plenty of metres (139) but dropped the ball in a damning knock-on as NSW frantically tried to resurrect the match in the second half. Looked to mistime a number of his runs throughout the match as he struggled to link up with the Blues’ ball players on the edge.

He also let debutant Cameron Munster through to set up Valentine Holmes on the wing. Limited training prep due to a calf injury appeared to cost the skipper big time. 5.5

Cordner had limited training this prep and it's showing. He's out of sync with the rest of NSW. #Origin

— Travis Meyn (@travismeyn) July 12, 2017

12. JOSH JACKSON

Was a shadow of his Game 2 self. Ran for only 39m but made 27 tackles in a quiet game in the second row. 5.5

13. TYSON FRIZELL

Solid defence. Busted a tackle early in the first half which looked promising but wasn’t given the ball enough to reach his full potential. 6.5

INTERCHANGE

14. DAVID KLEMMER

Always seemed to have the ball in hand when on the field. Did a strong job for NSW off the bench as the away side struggled to find holes in the Queensland defence. 7

15. WADE GRAHAM

Put a brave hit on Queensland wrecking ball Dylan Napa but gave away a penalty. Strong in defence but failed to make a serious impact off the bench. 6

16. JAKE TROBOJEVIC

Strong off the bench with solid metres gained. Displayed quick hands with a number of offloads to mess with Queensland’s momentum. 7

17. JACK BIRD

Quiet game off the bench. 25m gained in his stint on the field. Also made 12 tackles. 6

NSW skipper Boyd Cordner took a gamble, and it didn’t pay off.

QUEENSLAND

1. BILLY SLATER

Vintage Slater performance with damaging runs, linebreaks and offloads. Fittingly one of the chief architects of a famous victory. 9.

2. VALENTINE HOLMES

Hat-trick hero displaying superb athleticism to dive over for the opener before reeling in a ball behind him and beating two players to cross in the second half. 8.5.

3. WILL CHAMBERS

— All the fireworks erupted on the wing outside of him but a solid game nonetheless. 7.

4. MICHAEL MORGAN

Lovely offload helped Holmes to open the scoring. Another cog in a supreme attacking display for the Maroons’ backs. 7.5.

5. DANE GAGAI

Capped a sparkling series with another strong game. Looked dangerous whenever he got the ball and racked up more than 150m. 9.

6. CAMERON MUNSTER

Outstanding debut. Instrumental in setting up Holmes’s second-half try which changed the momentum of the game, then broke Blues hearts to set up Wallace for the sealer. 9.

7. COOPER CRONK

Sublime cross-field kick helped Holmes extend the lead to 12 in the second half. Has he ended his glittering Origin career on a dizzying high? 7.5.

8. DYLAN NAPA

Impressive debut series showed he can inflict a lot more damage through the middle in Origins to come. 7.5.

9. CAMERON SMITH

Class, courage and captaincy from the front. Another Origin to remember capped slotting three from four shots at goal. 8.

Cameron Smith had an absolute belter for the Maroons.

10. JARROD WALLACE

Got on the end of some Munster magnificence to score the final points of the night. 7.

11. GAVIN COOPER

Likely to be overshadowed by many heroic efforts but a solid display in defence and broke 100 run metres. 7.5.

12. MATT GILLETT

Brilliant game in defence with more than 40 tackle. One of the better Queensland forwards. 8

13. JOSH McGUIRE

Great workrate and made his presence felt with ball in hand. 7.5.

INTERCHANGE

14. BEN HUNT

Not enough time to have a major impact. 6.

15. JOSH PAPALII — Had an impact off the bench and had a hand in a try with a classy offload. 7.5.

16. COEN HESS — Not a standout, but achieving that wasn’t easy in a team performance laden with classy individual efforts. 6.

17. TIM GLASBY

Almost strode half the field but his lack of pace denied him a fairytale try. 6.

— with AAP