BRISBANE — A pair of eleventh-hour tactical changes by Queensland coach Billy Slater helped the Maroons surge past New South Wales 26-18 on Wednesday night, clinching the 2024 State of Origin rugby league series with a game to spare before 52,500 fans at Suncorp Stadium.
Trailing 12-10 at the break, Slater replaced fullback Reece Walsh with five-eighth Cameron Munster after Walsh failed a head-injury assessment, while interchange forward Reuben Cotter was shifted to the right edge to target rookie Blues centre Stephen Crichton. The moves produced immediate results: Munster scored off a short-side grubber in the 48th minute and Cotter’s off-load set up Valentine Holmes for the go-ahead try seven minutes later.
“Queensland changed the geometry of the field,” an opposition analyst told Fathom Journal. “By putting Munster at the back they gained an extra kicking option, and Cotter’s wider running lines unsettled the Blues’ defensive calls.” Slater, speaking post-match, downplayed the “genius” tag. “We train for contingencies. The players executed under pressure—that’s the real story,” he said.
Queensland’s kicking dominance was underscored by a 716-metre yardage advantage, according to provisional NRL statistics, and forced New South Wales into six goal-line drop-outs. Blues coach Michael Maguire conceded his side “lost the territory battle,” adding that an ankle injury to playmaker Nathan Cleary “limited our long-kicking game in the final quarter.”
The victory delivers Queensland an unassailable 2-0 lead ahead of the July 17 dead rubber in Sydney and extends Slater’s coaching record to five wins from six Origin matches. Analysts said the result is likely to intensify speculation that Slater could be pursued by NRL clubs amid rumours of coming vacancies at St George Illawarra and the Gold Coast Titans.
Looking ahead, Queensland selectors must decide whether to blood new talent in Game III or retain the core side to chase a rare clean sweep last achieved in 2010. For New South Wales, Maguire indicated wholesale changes were “on the table” as the Blues attempt to avoid their third series whitewash in 29 years.