It was the battle within the battle that elevated Sunday's clash, with five players eyeing State of Origin I before kick-off at Canberra Stadium.
For NSW, it was Hudson Young, Tom and Jake Trbojevic that had their hearts set on a Blues jersey before both Origin teams are to be named on Monday.
Young found himself in the thick of the action with 106 run metres, but had his impact hurt by a stint in the sin bin.