While neither were on the field as the siren sounded on a remarkable finish, Queensland’s wing pairing of Selwyn Cobbo and Murray Taulagi would have been content in the knowledge they had done the job required to clinch an early 1-0 Origin series lead.
Coming into the Adelaide Oval opener, both players were made to endure questions about their selections, with Cobbo’s error rate and Taulagi’s form in a struggling Cowboys side raising a few eyebrows south of the border.
However, both backs delivered game-turning performances, with Cobbo scoring his first – quickly followed by his second – Origin try, while on the opposite wing, Taulagi’s two try-saving tackles kept the Maroons in the game.
“They make the difference don’t they, moments like that, they make the difference,” coach Billy Slater said post-match of the defensive efforts.
“They hold you in the contest and you have got to celebrate them.
Selwyn Cobbo: 'I can't wipe the smile off my face'
“There were some big plays made at the end of the game, but you keep yourself in the contest at the start of the game by making those plays.”
Taulagi, who missed the final frantic moments of the game after being sent from the field for a HIA, however played down his role in the win, despite his defence proving vital to the overall result.
“Oh, I didn't really save the game (for Queensland); I was just pretty lucky to be in the right spot at that time,” Taulagi told jetwinvip.com.
“I thought our forwards did a really good job with putting pressure on and I think it just all came down to lot of effort.
Terrific Taulagi a wall in defence
“I reckon I was pretty lucky. I'm lucky the boys dug deep in the last seven minutes and they come away with the win.”
In his fourth game in maroon, Cobbo left the field late on with a hip injury, but not before scoring his double, including an impressive individual effort where he bumped off Tedesco and Jarome Luai coming across in cover — leaving both defenders in his wake as he powered over the try-line whilst still remembering to tuck his legs in tight with the sideline precariously close.
“I'm all good,” Cobbo said after the game when asked about his injury. “I'm feeling so excited and I can't wipe the smile off my face.
“It is a special feeling for me to score in an Origin game, but you know, it was the lead up to it … the boys were all in the right position at the right time and I was at the back of it.
“(My try), that was nothing, I just ran my hardest.”
Maroons v Blues – Game 1, 2023