New South Wales rugby league team
Representative rugby league team for New South Wales / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Also known as the Blues due to their sky blue jerseys. This annual event is a series of three games competing for the State of Origin shield. As of 2023, the team is coached by Michael Maguire and captained by James Tedesco.
Team information | ||||||
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Nicknames | The Blues Cockroaches | |||||
Governing body | New South Wales Rugby League | |||||
Head coach | Michael Maguire | |||||
Captain | James Tedesco | |||||
Most caps | Wally Prigg (34)[1] | |||||
Top try-scorer | Ken Irvine (30) | |||||
Top point-scorer | Mick Cronin (183) | |||||
Home stadium | Stadium Australia (84,000) | |||||
Uniforms | ||||||
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Team results | ||||||
First game | ||||||
New South Wales 8–12 New Zealand (Royal Agricultural Society Ground, Sydney; 1907) | ||||||
First State of Origin game | ||||||
Queensland 20–10 New South Wales (Lang Park, Brisbane; 8 July 1980) | ||||||
Biggest win | ||||||
New South Wales 69–5 Queensland (Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney; 4 June 1957) | ||||||
Biggest defeat | ||||||
Queensland 52–6 New South Wales (Suncorp Stadium; 8 July 2015) |
Prior to 1980 when the "state-of-origin" selection criteria were introduced, the New South Wales team, in addition to playing annually against Queensland, played matches against foreign touring sides and occasionally toured overseas themselves. They have played all their home matches at ANZ stadium in Sydney, New South Wales in the largest stadium in the state, since it was built in 1999 for the 2000 Sydney Olympics. The New South Wales team retained the 2019 Holden State of Origin Shield after beating Queensland 2–1 after being down 1–0, becoming the first NSW team to win a decider since the 2005 side, and were victorious again in the 2021 series.