Billy Slater got off to a red-hot start in his State of Origin coaching career, winning his first game in charge back in 2022 after taking over from Kevin Walters.
After copping a 44-12 hiding in Perth to bring Queensland firmly back down to earth, the rookie coach rallied his side to claim the shield on home soil.
The Maroons then powered over the top of New South Wales in the 2023 series, retaining bragging rights over the Blues.
MORE STATE OF ORIGIN COVERAGE: QLD Maroons player ratings from Game I | NSW Blues player ratings from Game I
Is DCE's rep career over as QLD Maroons stare down the barrel of another Origin series loss?
After the departure of Brad Fittler the following year, Slater had a new adversary to take on in Michael Maguire.
Yet his QLD side looked up to the challenge against the premiership-winning mentor in the Blues box as they romped to a 38-10 victory in Sydney.
At this stage, things were looking rosy for Slater and his state.
He had already bagged two series wins in a row, while they looked well on their way to their third.
However, Origin is a notoriously temperamental beast and Maguire’s men rebounded from the loss with back-to-back wins, including the decider in Brisbane, to snatch the series.
Another new sheriff then rode into town south of the border despite the triumph as Maguire decamped to Red Hill and Laurie Daley returned for a second crack at it.
Daley last coached the Blues in 2017 and was caught right in the eye of the QLD storm that saw the state enjoy an unprecedented era of dominance.
Slater was positioned front and centre of Daley’s misery during this period with the fullback haunting NSW time and time again.
However, Daley enjoyed a bit of retribution upon his return to the fold as he guided his state to an opening victory in Game I.
MORE: What is Laurie Daley’s Origin coaching record with the Blues?
The Blues are making a habit out of turning their rivals over in their backyard.
QLD have now lost back-to-back games at their fortress, having previously not done that in almost three decades.
The 18-6 win at Suncorp also continued the Blues’ dominance over their rivals in the wider scheme of things. After all, they have won four of the last five matches to leave Slater scrambling for answers.
Barring the aformentioned blowout in Game I last year, his side has struggled in attack during this lean time.
The Queenslanders have been kept to single-digit scores in consecutive games, while they have conceded double figures to the Blues on every occasion in this five-match run.
The clunkiness in the attack was singled out as one of the decisive factors in their loss to Daley’s men.
So much so, that Andrew Johns openly questioned mid-match whether Daly Cherry-Evans’ time in the rep arena was drawing to a close.
The skipper has struggled at Manly for much of the NRL campaign, with his announced departure at the end of the year sending shockwaves through the Northern Beaches.
And DCE was unable to locate his rhythm in the famous QLD jersey either as the veteran struggled alongside fellow spine members Kalyn Ponga, Cameron Munster and Harry Grant to mount any meaningful offence.
However, despite a rapidly growing feeling that the halfback could be axed with Tom Dearden promoted off the bench for Game II in Perth, Slater seemed to dismiss this notion.
"I definitely don’t think it’s a personnel thing," the Maroons coach replied when asked if changes could be afoot.
"I know what this team’s capable of and that’s why… you can probably see I’m disappointed because they haven’t played their best footy and I feel responsible to try and help them get there.
"So yeah, it’s definitely not a personnel thing, to be honest."
"With losing comes the question," DCE added when queried if he was nervous about his position. "We’ve opened ourselves up to these sorts of questions but I’d love the opportunity to come back and correct it."
For so long, Slater and the No.7 have been a successful pairing in Origin.
Yet while the coach appeared ready to back his players in the face of scrutiny, a comment he made about his team’s lack of discipline and in-game management could also be applied to his impending situation as he suddenly stares down the barrel of another series defeat.
"We needed to change things," Slater said. "And we didn’t change things enough."