The State of Origin series is heading to Sydney with it all to play for.
A spirited Queensland performance, combined with some ill-discipline and poor kicking from the Blues, kept the series alive in Perth, with the Maroons hanging on to win 26-24.
As always, there's no shortage of talking points out of the clash, with plenty to mull over before Game 3 next month.
MORE: Queensland player ratings | Blues player ratings
Blues get the forwards mix wrong
The loss of Mitch Barnett proved to be a significant one for Daley's side.
In Game 1, the Warriors man played 41 hard minutes, with his front-row partner Payne Haas turning out 58 minutes.
With Barnett out, Max King was elevated into the starting side, but played just 25 minutes, well down on the 39 he played off the bench at Suncorp Stadium.
King's lack of impact meant Spencer Leniu had to play longer minutes, quelling his normally explosive contribution.
On debut, Stefano Utoikamanu was fair, performing more or less to the level he does for the Storm, but not enough to guarantee selection for the decider.
Elsewhere, Canberra backrower Hudson Young ended up playing 46 minutes, predominantly in the middle of the park.
While Young was serviceable, albeit being caught out in defence on occasion, it appears as if the question remains how best to use him at Origin level.
While Daley has said he's happy with his squad, he might consider tinking with his pack slightly.
Do the Blues consider pushing the Raiders man into the starting side at the expense of Angus Crichton or Liam Martin, with either of those two utilised in an impact role off the bench?
With Keaon Koloamatangi nursing a facial fracture and Haumole Olakau'atu having busted his shoulder, could Terrell May come into the team to start alongside Haas, leaving Leniu to provide punch off the bench and King to revert back to his interchange role from Game 1?
We don't want to whinge, but...
Is there another sport which puts as much control in the hands of officials as rugby league does with the six-again rule?
If you've ever watched a game with someone new to the sport, chances are you've attempted to explain why some "ruck infringements" warrant a set restart, others are deemed penalties and some are let go.
The reality is, unless you're in the referee's head, it's impossible.
Hastily introduced upon the resumption of the competition in 2020, the six-again rule has unsurprisingly created more confusion and frustration, while simultaneously giving teams another avenue to manipulate the officiating in their favour.
To our clearly untrained eye, Kurt Capewell hauling Zac Lomax to the ground on the fifth tackle late in the first half, preventing a quick play-the-ball, looked like a cut and dry set restart.
Ashley Klein disagreed.
A couple minutes later, Kalyn Ponga was able to get up and play the ball quickly after Liam Martin dropped off the tackle, the Blues backrower presumably conscious of the one-sided penalty count up to that point, with Queensland able to score through Kurt Capewell on that same play.
Clunky combinations cost New South Wales
For a halves pairing which is statistically the most successful in NRL history, and combined for four premierships at the Panthers, Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai didn't look particularly connected.
Perhaps the late inclusion of Luai following Mitch Moses' injury disrupted the team balance, but the Blues' attack lacked any real fluency, frequently seeing players receive the ball running down dead ends or frantically flicking it around in the hope of conjuring something from nothing.
Too often, sets came and went seemingly with no plan.
Down by eight points with 10 minutes on the clock, interchange hooker Connor Watson twice passed to a well-covered short side, despite the left-side combination of Crichton, Mitchell and Brian To'o proving to be the Blues' best avenue to the line.
Despite going into the break down by 20 points, and another wayward night with the kicking tee, the Blues had more than enough chances to win it in the second half.
Of course, some credit must go to the Maroons defence, who through the likes of Cameron Munster and Kurt Capewell repeatedly rushed the NSW playmakers.
If Cleary and Laui are to get the nod for the Accor Stadium decider as expected, some more time on the training paddock to recapture the spark will do them a world of good.
Caught out
The diminutive Blues winger was his side's best player with three tries and another mountain of run metres, but he didn't cover himself in glory for Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow's second try.
The Hammer soars for his second! 🚀#Origin pic.twitter.com/daEe4ShN1i
— NRL (@NRL) June 18, 2025
Yes, he's giving away a few inches in height, but The Hammer was served up the footy, and a clear run to the line, on a silver platter.
While he's over there in Perth, To'o could benefit from dropping into the West Coast Eagles of Fremantle Dockers and asking for some advice from one of their small defenders in how to deal with a similar situation.