PREVIEW: 2016 Origin III

v BYE at

Will the Blues restore some pride in front of their home fans or can the Maroons secure a rare clean sweep?

With Queensland securing their tenth series victory out of the last eleven attempts with wins in the opening two games of this year's series, attention now turns to the game three dead-rubber looming on Wednesday night. Just don't tell anyone in Camp Blue or Maroon this game has any less meaning. 

The Blues will be doing everything in their power to send Captain courageous Paul Gallen out with a win in his final game in the Origin arena, a match in which he will become the most capped NSW skipper in Origin history. They will also be looking to restore some pride in the sky blue jersey in front of their home fans at ANZ Stadium, whilst trying to further develop combinations heading into next year's series.

The big IN for the Blues is James Tedesco in the number one jersey. The Tigers custodian has been in red-hot attacking form for the best part of 18 months now and will be tasked with igniting a struggling Blues attack that has failed to deliver the necessary points to challenge their foes from North of the border. 

Originally making way for Tedesco was Matt Moylan after a couple of mixed performances in the opening two games. That was until halfback Adam Reynolds failed to prove a troublesome shoulder injury sustained in game two was up to the rigors of Origin football. Moylan has been recalled to the squad but in what capacity, only those inside the Blues camp will know until an hour before kick-off.

The most likely scenario is that Jack Bird will join the run-on side at five-eight with Moylan used as a bench utility, given Bird played the entire 2015 season at six and Moylan has never filled the role at top grade level.

Regardless of whether Moylan or Bird runs out for the opening exchanges, the role of new halfback James Maloney becomes a whole lot harder. Whilst he appears more than capable of steering a team around the park, his kicking game (both short and long) will need to rise to another level to negate the loss of Reynolds and he'll be relying on the help of Robbie Farah and even Wade Graham to take some of the pressure off in that department.

Other changes for the Blues include Josh Dugan coming in at right centre for Dylan Walker and Wade Graham getting his chance in the seventeen in place of Greg Bird. The inclusion of Graham in the second-row sees game two star Tyson Frizell listed to start at lock with James Tamou dropping back to the bench. As was the case in game one though, don't be surprised to see a late change with Tamou starting, Gallen pushing back to lock and wither Graham or Frizell playing from the pine.

For the Maroons, a rare chance at securing a series clean sweep awaits. Despite dominating for the majority of this Maroon dynasty which kicked off in 2006, the 2010 series was the only year this champion team managed to record a 3-0 series victory. The senior playing group will be using this rare shot at history to help get them up for this game. 

Whilst most of the spotlight has been on Paul Gallen playing his last Origin game, his long-time rival at the base of the scrum Corey Parker will also be donning State colours for the last time and rest assured, his teammates will be hell-bent on sending him out with a farewell victory of his own.

The Maroons have been forced into a couple of rare changes for game three following injuries to interchange men Michael Morgan and Josh Papalii. Whilst the utility value of Morgan is a blow, the real loss here is that of Papalii. The Raiders back-rower has been a constant rock through the middle for the Maroons in the opening two games and could prove a bigger loss than many people think.

Coming into the squad is 30 game veteran Nate Myles and 30 year old debutante Gavin Cooper. The inclusion of Myles as starting prop will see Josh McGuire back in the interchange roll alongside Cooper who looks set to extend his left-side combination with Cowboys team-mate Johnathan Thurston when he hits the pitch.

Last meeting: Game II 2016 - Maroons 26 Blues 16

Despite the Blues holding their own in the Suncorp Stadium furnace for much of the contest, the Maroons simply did it for the full 80 minutes to claim yet another Origin shield.

Who to watch: For Blues fans, it's hard to remember a more anticipated debut in recent times than that of James Tedesco's. Since opening the season with a blistering two try performance back in round one, the chorus of New South Welshman calling for his inclusion has hit fever pitch and on Wednesday night he gets his chance to live up to all the hype. Gifted with blistering pace and a natural ball-playing ability, Tedesco ticks all the boxes. His speed alone will ensure his team-mates lift another cog to keep up with him and with the Blues showing signs of potentially coming over the top of the Maroons in recent times, Teddy could be the man to deliver the knockout punch.

Despite helping Cooper Cronk steer the Queensland ship with some key Origin plays throughout the opening two games, Johnathan Thurston has had a somewhat quiet series attacking wise by his lofty standards, with only the one try-assist coming in game two. With the series secured for the Maroons, expect a more free-flowing attack from them with Thurston sure to be unleashing from his deep bag of tricks. The inclusion of his long-time go to man at club level, Gavin Cooper will only add to his attacking prowess.

The favourite: Despite NSW being 2-0 down in the series they are $1.85 favourites to secure a win on their home turf.

My tip: If the Blues can get off to a strong start and get Tedesco some quality ball with room to move, they are capable of coming over the top of the Maroons in a big way. More likely though, the Maroons will hold firm and offer plenty of resistance sending the game right down to the wire. In this instance, expect the game management of the usual suspects to get them across the line. Don't be surprised to see Thurston sending Gavin Cooper crashing over in the dying stages for the match-winner... Queensland by 2.

1. James Tedesco 2. Blake Ferguson 3. Michael Jennings 4. Josh Dugan 5. Josh Mansour 14. Matt Moylan 7. James Maloney 8. Aaron Woods 9. Robbie Farah 10. Paul Gallen 11. Wade Graham 12. Josh Jackson 13. Tyson Frizell
Interchange: 6. Jack Bird 15. James Tamou 16. David Klemmer 17. Andrew Fifita

1. Darius Boyd 2. Corey Oates 3. Greg Inglis 4. Justin O'Neill 5. Dane Gagai 6. Johnathan Thurston 7. Cooper Cronk 8. Matthew Scott 9. Cameron Smith 10. Nate Myles 11. Matt Gillett 12. Sam Thaiday 13. Corey Parker
Interchange: 14. Gavin Cooper 15. Josh Mcguire 16. Aidan Guerra 17. Jacob Lillyman

Referees: Gerard Sutton, Ben Cummins; Sideline Officials: Jeff Younis, Michael Wise; Video Referees: Bernard Sutton, Luke Patten, Ashley Klein