NRL officials expected 7000 people to brave the crisp conditions at North Sydney Oval for the second edition of Women's State of Origin.
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How wrong they were.
On a night which celebrated everything this fixture has become in the space of just two years, 10,515 clicked through the turnstiles on Friday night to watch NSW beat Queensland 14-4.
That may have been a modest count, too.
![Blues playmaker Maddie Studdon (left) is mobbed after scoring the match-sealing try. Picture: AAP Blues playmaker Maddie Studdon (left) is mobbed after scoring the match-sealing try. Picture: AAP](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc75vzuxhp1uecg97u65q.jpg/r0_19_2089_1286_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
They packed into the O'Reilly Stand to watch Isabelle Kelly bust tackles, climbed to the top of the Macartney Stand to see Jessica Sergis step her way through the defence and lined the picket fence to get a glimpse of the playmaking prowess of Maddie Studdon.
It was standing room only by the time the two teams went to work. And went to work they did.
There were precision passes from Kirra Dibb and big hits from Hannah Southwell but the fast stepping feet of Sergis were what kept NSW in the hunt through a first half which was really all for the Queensland fans.
AFP officer by day, star Origin prop by night, it was Heather Ballinger who laid the platform for the visitors.
She charged through the middle of the field set after set, allowing Queensland's halves - Ali Brigginshaw and Jenni Sue-Hopper - to pin NSW in their own half.
![Corban McGregor of NSW is tackled by Karina Brown (left), Tallisha Harden and Amber Pilley (right) of the Maroons. Picture: AAP Corban McGregor of NSW is tackled by Karina Brown (left), Tallisha Harden and Amber Pilley (right) of the Maroons. Picture: AAP](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc75vzcupddbngyzhz65q.jpg/r0_0_4259_2839_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Eventually, the pressure told and turned into points.
After being denied an earlier Tallisha Harden try due to a Brigginshaw forward pass, Tamzin Gray caught the ball in space, stepped off her right foot, stuck the left arm out to palm a would be tackler and crash over to set up the 4-0 half time lead.
It wasn't all bad for NSW fans, though.
Two of the new kids on the block, rugby converts Tiana Penitani and Millie Boyle, impressed.
As did Sergis, which was to be expected.
But their kicking game was disappointing, an afterthought which released the pressure the home side were able to build through strong carries.
When play resumed, that same kicking game turned the match on its head.
![Stephanie Hancock of the Maroons is tackled by Holli Wheeler and Shontelle Stowers (right) of NSW. Picture: AAP Stephanie Hancock of the Maroons is tackled by Holli Wheeler and Shontelle Stowers (right) of NSW. Picture: AAP](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc75vz9ieqygo194pqc65q.jpg/r0_0_4038_2691_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Maddie Studdon put a perfectly-weighted grubber in behind the Queensland line after earning field position with a booming kick down field, only for Shakiah Tungai to drop the ball over the line.
It was a big blow but one minute later, a 'New South Wales' chant broke out in the O'Reilly Stand.
The crowd could sense a different NSW team had returned from the sheds.
They were on the money.
Fittingly, with 20 to play, a sharp cutout pass put Sergis in space down the right edge after Queensland were pinged with ball in hand and she put NSW on the board.
When Dibb sliced the conversion attempt, the home side weren't disheartened.
Dibb made up for the missed conversion with a forty-thirty and the woman they packed into the O'Reilly stand to see - Kelly - set up the try which stopped Queensland in their tracks.
The second half was all about the reigning Golden Boot superstar.
![Maroons players celebrate Tazmin Gray's opening try. Picture: AAP Maroons players celebrate Tazmin Gray's opening try. Picture: AAP](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc75vzgtrxoqt1db82u65q.jpg/r0_104_2043_1257_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
She shed the tackle of Queensland rookie Stephanie Mooka, hit Tungai on the chest and the winger didn't make any mistake in grounding the ball the second time around.
NSW were on a roll.
Willed on by those fans who lined the picket fence, Studdon finished what she started in the second half.
She dummied, stepped and scored the match winner.
By the time the final siren rung out, it was easy to see why the fans had climbed to the top of the Macartney Stand.
This was rugby league at its best, encompassing all the elements which drew the crowd through the gates in the first place.
NEW SOUTH WALES 14 (Jessica Sergis 38, Shakiah Tungai 44, Maddie Studdon 50 tries; Kira Dibb goal) bt QUEENSLAND 4 (Tazmin Gray try) at North Sydney Oval on Friday night. Crowd: 10,515.