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Queensland 10 - NSW 6
SYDNEY - You can't teach an old dog new tricks and when it comes to Steve Price and Petero Civoniceva it is abundantly clear you don't have to.
The big Queensland bookends once again showed the next generation that when it comes to being a State of Origin rugby league forward, your job is to grab the football and do exactly that - take it forward.
In 33-year-old Price and Civoniceva, 31, the Maroons' props were two of the oldest players at Telstra Stadium last night and just like a vintage wine they only get better with age.
Having utterly humiliated the Blues at Suncorp Stadium three weeks ago, Price and Civoniceva again tormented the maligned NSW pack, eating away at the metres with every touch as Queensland clinched back-to-back series titles with a tense 10-6 victory for a 2-nil series lead.
Even with NSW's superior kicking game through recalled halfback Brett Kimmorley, the Blues were rarely given the field position to launch an attack on the Queensland line.
And it was because of the big Fijian and his workhouse buddy Price.
Civoniceva carried the ball 17 times but more tellingly he gained a whopping 157 metres.
Price, unlucky not to be named man of the match in Origin I, was equally impressive with 14 hit ups gaining 127m.
Only Neville Costigan, playing off the bench, carried the ball beyond 50m for the game for Queensland's other forwards.
To put the Price-Civoniceva contribution into perspective, only NSW forward Willie Mason did better and he had been stung into action after he was one of several Blues threatened with the sack if they didn't aim up last night.
Mason stood tall with his impressive effort of 19 hit ups gaining 170m and 23 tackles.
Unfortunately, he didn't have much support.
Luke Bailey worked hard in attack - with 11 runs at 79m - but the Blues forwards did far too much work in defence to have any impact when given the ball.
Lock Andrew Ryan made 53 tackles, Nathan Hindmarsh and Danny Buderus both 38.
The NSW forward pack was blasted for lacking aggression in Origin I and although they aimed up with some heavy hits in defence last night, cleanskins Price and Civoniceva proved winning the battle up front is best done with ball in hand and head down.
The platform laid by the Queenslanders enabled Test hooker Cameron Smith to dominate the ruck with several telling darts out of dummy half gaining 90m.
And it was then, with the NSW defence back-pedalling, halfback Johnathan Thurston found space and took control with his own running game.
After 40 minutes of arm-wrestling, Thurston finally struck gold with a clever grubber behind the line in the 64th minute for Steven Bell to score the match and series clinching try in the corner.
And won't the old dogs be barking after this win.
"Defence and our guts won it," said an exhausted Darren Lockyer, only the second Queensland captain to go back-to-back after Wally Lewis in 1988-89.
"We were under the pump in the second half but the guys just hung in."
The game was locked at 6-all at half time after NSW debutante Brett Stewart made a dream Origin arrival with a try in the sixth minute.
QUEENSLAND 10 (G Inglis S Bell tries J Thurston goal) bt NSW 6 (B Stewart try J Lyon goal) at Telstra Stadium. Crowd: 76,924. Referee: S Hayne.
- AAP
