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ABC News
29-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
How the Maroons salvaged Origin pride, as Southwell proves she's the next great halfback
All it took was a look from Maroons veteran Ali Brigginshaw, and Chelsea Lenarduzzi knew it was on. With the Maroons trailing by two in the final minutes of a State of Origin series they'd already lost, Brigginshaw eyeballed Lenarduzzi from dummy half, and popped it up for the bustling forward to barge over for one of her 'favourite plays', and the match winner. Lenarduzzi didn't play in Game I, in Game II she was added onto the bench and failed to fire, but as a late addition to the starting side in Game III, she thrived to prevent a series whitewash. The Broncos' prop effectively bulldozed the Blues in her opening stint, tiring their defenders to help lay the foundation for the Maroons' opener. And in a game littered with momentum swings – and handling errors – it was a defining 11 minutes, proving the Queensland pack wouldn't be outmuscled this time around. There was an impressive supporting cast who stepped into the spotlight throughout the game, including Tarryn Aiken who cast aside a sub-par kicking game in the first half, to orchestrate much of the Maroons' mayhem in the second. Julia Robinson was an immense defensive presence — and constant nuisance for her opposing winger Jamie Chapman, who gave as good as she got. And while Brigginshaw was well below her best this series, which seems likely to be her last, it was fitting that she set up the match-winner and took the final intercept to snuff out any hopes of a Blues comeback after the siren. But for all the positives the Maroons will take from securing the consolation prize in the dead rubber, it's a series that the Blues undoubtedly deserved to win, and where new superstars were forged. Reigning Dally M medallist Olivia Kernick won the Nellie Doherty medal for the player of the series, largely off the back of a brilliant Game II, but this series was Jesse Southwell's coming of age. Once again, her kicking was on point, her passing perfection, and her vision unparalleled. Her hand in the Blues' second try was especially magnetic. At first receiver approaching the Maroons' tryline she held the ball for barely a second, which felt like so much longer, such was the way she feigned the slightest dummy, carefully surveyed her options out wide, then delivered a pinpoint two-player cutout for Jayme Fressard to score. Time is something the great players have a command of, and with each game, Southwell is mastering it. And while it's unfair, and premature, to compare the 20-year-old Novocastrian to Newcastle's most famous number 7, Andrew Johns himself has heaped praise on her and predicted a bright future. After debuting for the Blues in 2023, Southwell wasn't selected last year. The time away has likely fuelled this year's resurrection, and not only has she set herself up as a player for the Blues to build a team around for years to come, a first Jillaroos jersey can't be far off. Blues fullback Abbi Church was another who had a breakout series, and strong performance in Game III. Every time the Blues went to Church, they were rewarded. There was her heroic effort to hold Emily Bass up over the line, incisive line breaks, a clever grubber to earn a repeat set, and a perfectly weighted pass to set up what should have been a try to Isabelle Kelly, who inexplicably failed to ground the ball in the in-goal. The Eels number one debuted in Game I, dethroning Emma Verran, and now looks to be a mainstay. Overall this series won't go down as an Origin classic, and once again questions have been raised over the timing of it. The Queensland competition doesn't kick off till June, with the NSW Premiership and NRLW getting underway in July. It means both sides effectively come into Origin with no real match fitness, and only a six-week training block to prepare for the series opener. And post-match, Maroons coach Tahnee Norris was blunt. "It's the hardest game of football that these girls play in, and they came off the back of nothing," she said. "We want the best footy that's played. These girls need to be playing NRLW so we can pick them off that. It needs to be in the middle of an NRLW season for sure."
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Late try helps Maroons save face in Game 3 of women's Origin series
Queensland salvaged pride in the Women's State of Origin series by claiming the third contest 18-14 thanks to a second-half comeback in Newcastle that prevented the Blues from securing a first clean sweep in the three-match series. Related: NSW Blues wrap up Origin series with rain-soaked win over Queensland Maroons Advertisement Powerful Maroons prop Chelsea Lenarduzzi crashed over from an Ali Brigginshaw pass with four minutes to go, taking three Blues defenders with her, to put Queensland into the lead and spoil the Blues' party. 'Ali actually gave me a bit of a look, and I knew what she meant,' Lenarduzzi said. 'It's one of my favourite plays, and worked at the right time.' The pair combined for the deciding try, but their impact was also central from the start of Thursday's improved Queensland performance. Maroons coach Tahnee Norris sent shock waves through the sport before kick-off when she named Brigginshaw – captain and Jillaroos great – on the bench and promoted Lenarduzzi to the starting lineup. The burly prop played the first ten minutes and helped set the tone after the Maroons suffered 32-12 and 26-6 defeats earlier in the series. Aided by the physicality of Lenarduzzi – who was not selected for the first game and played off the bench in the second – Queensland offered early punch, and were rewarded with a seventh minute try to Makenzie Weale. 'An Origin is still an Origin,' Lenarduzzi said afterwards. 'You represent yourself, your state, and this group is really cool, we've had a really good time in camp, and we've obviously been really disappointed the last couple of games, so we needed a show we were capable of.' Advertisement Although NSW had already secured the shield, another strong crowd of 21,912 turned out in Newcastle, consolidating the city's status as the home of women's rugby league. They came despite a forecast of rain that turned into a downpour at the final whistle. And they were treated to a mix of the brilliant and the bizarre in a tight contest. Related: Maroons seek to avoid historic State of Origin sweep as Hayley Maddick makes up for lost time | Jack Snape The game's strangest moment came midway through the first half, when Blues captain Isabelle Kelly crossed untouched for what seemed to be a try to put her side on the board. Kelly slid into the in-goal, but skidded across the turf on her ball-carrying arm without completing the grounding. The mistake was an embarrassment for one of the game's most accomplished players, who shook her head as she watched the replay and the bunker disallowed the try. It was the standout in a series of wild sequences in the first half, which also included two more disallowed tries – both would-be try-scorers adjudged out of play by millimetres – a fiery tussle between Queensland winger Julia Robinson and her opposite number Jaime Chapman, and one of the season's best try-saving tackles. Advertisement Maroons centre Emily Bass grabbed a bouncing ball a metre out from the Blues try line with no one in front of her, but NSW fullback Abbi Church managed to race in and twist her opponent to prevent the grounding. It was a piece of skill befitting the Origin stage, as was the 20m cut-out pass by Jesse Southwell to set up the Blues' second try. The Blues had all the momentum in the second half when they raced to a 14-6 lead with 20 minutes to go. Interchange hooker Jocelyn Kelleher leaped out from dummy half and away from the clutches of Brigginshaw to score what appeared to be the decisive four-pointer. But 35-year-old Brigginshaw would have the last laugh. Five minutes later five-eighth Tarryn Aiken grubbered for Romy Teitzel to score, and then the captain sent Lenarduzzi over to curb celebrations in the Hunter. 'A bit of a disappointing end to the game three, but we've still got to keep our spirits high,' Church said. 'We're still going to get to lift the shield, we would have liked to get that clean sweep, but it wasn't meant to be today.' Advertisement Maroons forward Jess Elliston ran for 143m was named player of the match, and Blues' lock Olivia Kernick claimed the award for player of the series. Related: NSW Blues wrap up Origin series with rain-soaked win over Queensland Maroons
The Guardian
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Late try helps Maroons save face in Game 3 of women's Origin series
Queensland salvaged pride in the Women's State of Origin series by claiming the third contest 18-14 thanks to a second-half comeback in Newcastle that prevented the Blues from securing a first clean sweep in the three-match series. Powerful Maroons prop Chelsea Lenarduzzi crashed over from an Ali Brigginshaw pass with four minutes to go, taking three Blues defenders with her, to put Queensland into the lead and spoil the Blues' party. 'Ali actually gave me a bit of a look, and I knew what she meant,' Lenarduzzi said. 'It's one of my favourite plays, and worked at the right time.' The pair combined for the deciding try, but their impact was also central from the start of Thursday's improved Queensland performance. Maroons coach Tahnee Norris sent shock waves through the sport before kick-off when she named Brigginshaw – captain and Jillaroos great – on the bench and promoted Lenarduzzi to the starting lineup. The burly prop played the first ten minutes and helped set the tone after the Maroons suffered 32-12 and 26-6 defeats earlier in the series. Aided by the physicality of Lenarduzzi – who was not selected for the first game and played off the bench in the second – Queensland offered early punch, and were rewarded with a seventh minute try to Makenzie Weale. 'An Origin is still an Origin,' Lenarduzzi said afterwards. 'You represent yourself, your state, and this group is really cool, we've had a really good time in camp, and we've obviously been really disappointed the last couple of games, so we needed a show we were capable of.' Although NSW had already secured the shield, another strong crowd of 21,912 turned out in Newcastle, consolidating the city's status as the home of women's rugby league. They came despite a forecast of rain that turned into a downpour at the final whistle. And they were treated to a mix of the brilliant and the bizarre in a tight contest. The game's strangest moment came midway through the first half, when Blues captain Isabelle Kelly crossed untouched for what seemed to be a try to put her side on the board. Kelly slid into the in-goal, but skidded across the turf on her ball-carrying arm without completing the grounding. The mistake was an embarrassment for one of the game's most accomplished players, who shook her head as she watched the replay and the bunker disallowed the try. It was the standout in a series of wild sequences in the first half, which also included two more disallowed tries – both would-be try-scorers adjudged out of play by millimetres – a fiery tussle between Queensland winger Julia Robinson and her opposite number Jaime Chapman, and one of the season's best try-saving tackles. Maroons centre Emily Bass grabbed a bouncing ball a metre out from the Blues try line with no one in front of her, but NSW fullback Abbi Church managed to race in and twist her opponent to prevent the grounding. It was a piece of skill befitting the Origin stage, as was the 20m cut-out pass by Jesse Southwell to set up the Blues' second try. The Blues had all the momentum in the second half when they raced to a 14-6 lead with 20 minutes to go. Interchange hooker Jocelyn Kelleher leaped out from dummy half and away from the clutches of Brigginshaw to score what appeared to be the decisive four-pointer. Sign up to Australia Sport Get a daily roundup of the latest sports news, features and comment from our Australian sports desk after newsletter promotion But 35-year-old Brigginshaw would have the last laugh. Five minutes later five-eighth Tarryn Aiken grubbered for Romy Teitzel to score, and then the captain sent Lenarduzzi over to curb celebrations in the Hunter. 'A bit of a disappointing end to the game three, but we've still got to keep our spirits high,' Church said. 'We're still going to get to lift the shield, we would have liked to get that clean sweep, but it wasn't meant to be today.' Maroons forward Jess Elliston ran for 143m was named player of the match, and Blues' lock Olivia Kernick claimed the award for player of the series.
News.com.au
29-05-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Chelsea match-winner! QLD avoid sweep
State of Origin: Chelsea Lenarduzzi has scored the match-winning try to give Queensland an important game three victory, avoiding a first ever sweep in a three-game Women’s State of Origin series.
News.com.au
29-05-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Queensland Maroons win 18-14 over NSW in Women's State of Origin III but Blues win the series
Queensland have been left contemplating serious change for 2026 despite saving face with a 18-14 win over NSW on Thursday night. Less than 24 hours after the Queensland men were beaten 18-6 in Origin I at Suncorp Stadium, the Maroons women gave the state something to cheer about with prop Chelsea Lenarduzzi scoring her first Origin try in the dying minutes to beat the Blues at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle. Despite losing their second series in a row, Lenarduzzi's matchwinner was a moment of inspiration for the future of Queensland who are grappling with change moving into 2026. Coach Tahnee Norris is now under pressure to keep her position after five years in the role, while the depth of available talent in the state will also be thoroughly examined heading into the upcoming NRLW season. The playing future of inspirational captain Ali Brigginshaw is also under question heading into next year's series. It could be a turning point for the Maroons. To the delight of the 21,912-strong crowd in Newcastle they showed there's no such thing as a dead rubber when it comes to Origin. The Blues were leading 8-6 at halftime but Queensland never let them breathe after back-to-back thrashings in Sydney and Brisbane. However, a revived halves combination of Lauren Brown and Tarryn Aiken looked to revive the Maroons attack and could be the answer moving forward. The pair kept the pressure on the Blues with a smart kicking game that was hard to contain. The Maroons were missing a stack of players on Thursday night including co-captain Tamika Upton, while rookie centre Rory Owen was ruled out on game day with a medical issue, replaced on right edge with experienced winger Emily Bass. Shenae Ciesiolka (knee) and Destiny Brill (ribs) also didn't finish the game. Queensland scored first through prop Makenzie Weale and a try to Romy Teitzel kept them in it just after halftime. The Blues were way below their best. Skipper Isabelle Kelly committed the ultimate sin by not grounding a ball while untouched over the tryline, while Jocelyn Kelleher and Jess Sergis kept it close before defensive errors cruelled them with minutes to go.
