Blues look to seal 2025 Women's Origin in Sydney

New South Wales (W) v Queensland (W) Thursday 7:45pm at Allianz Stadium, Moore Park / Gadigal

New South Wales will look to secure the Women's State of Origin shield on Thursday night as for the first time, Women's Origin heads to Allianz Stadium for the first time as the Blues take on Queensland.

It was a Blues ambush in Queensland when New South Wales took a surprise 32-12 victory at Suncorp Stadium. The victory may not have necessarily been a surprise for the Blues but it was the margin that was the biggest shock of the night. The Blues started fast and despite some concerning defence at times the Blues were able to pull away later in the first half and put a strong second half performance putting on 18 unanswered points after leading 14-12 at the break.

The Blues performance in game 1 was exemplary and they will need to ensure that they put in the same level of effort in that they did in the first game because Queensland are going to improve. The aspect of only having one half was a risk for the Blues and whilst it paid off in the first game, it might not be something that could be perfect for New South Wales in Game 2.

The Blues have kept their on-field team exactly the same as they did for the first game at Suncorp Stadium whilst there was just one extended squad change with Brydie Parker coming in for Kirra Dibb.
A first game loss won't be a worry for the Queenslanders who had the exact same situation happen to them last year however the scope of the loss would be the biggest concern. Last year, the Maroons lost game one at Suncorp Stadium before picking up wins in Newcastle and Townsville to win the first three game series.

The performance for the Maroons would be a concern to the coach Tahnee Norris as the Blues were dominant across all the stats and the key players didn't really match the expectations put upon them. The statistics didn't paint a pretty picture for Queensland out of the first match with all the key stats favouring the Blues showing how much they were dominate through out the contest including only having just one line break.

Queensland have kept the same overall squad but made one change to their 17 with Chelsea Lenarduzzi coming onto the bench to add some size to the bench rotation whilst Destiny Brill drops off into the reserves.

Last meeting: Series 2025 - QLD 12 NSW 32

Who to watch:: The key is going to be in the halves yet again and as mentioned above, the option for the Blues to go with one specialised half is a risk again so the pressure goes well and truly on Jesse Southwell. The halfback had an indifferent NRLW season at the end of last year before the break but she played excellently for the game but in Game 2 the pressure will be truly on.

One of the best ever female players to grace the field, Ali Brigginshaw has been a leader for Queensland for a long time and they are going to need another captains knock to keep the series alive. The performance of Brigginshaw was bizarrely below par as she failed to find range with her kicking game and just being outplayed. There is never any reason to doubt the veteran but this week in particular, the pressure will be on.

The favourite: NSW are slight favourites.

My tip: In front of a home crowd, New South Wales I think should be able to have enough to lock up the series. The Queenslanders will definitely be better than they were in game 1 but there was just a lot to like about the Blues performances to think they can see off the Maroons in a much closer game. NSW by 6.

1. Abbi Church 2. Jaime Chapman 3. Jessica Sergis 4. Isabelle Kelly 5. Jayme Fressard 6. Tiana Penitani 7. Jesse Southwell 8. Simaima Taufa 9. Keeley Davis 10. Ellie Johnston 11. Kezie Apps 12. Yasmin Clydsdale 13. Olivia Kernick 14. Jocelyn Kelleher 15. Kennedy Cherrington 16. Sarah Togatuki 17. Emma Verran 18. Shaylee Bent 19. Olivia Higgins 20. Brydie Parker

1. Tamika Upton 2. Julia Robinson 3. Shenae Ciesiolka 4. Rory Owen 5. Jasmine Peters 6. Tarryn Aiken 7. Ali Brigginshaw 8. Makenzie Weale 9. Lauren Brown 10. Jessika Elliston 11. Sienna Lofipo 12. Romy Teitzel 13. Keilee Joseph 14. Jada Ferguson 15. Sophie Holyman 16. Chelsea Lenarduzzi 17. Tavarna Papalii 18. Georgia Hannaway 19. Destiny Brill 20. Hayley Maddick

Referees: Belinda Sharpe; Sideline Officials: Kieren Irons, Daniel Luttringer; Video Referees: Gerard Sutton;