Fullback Billy Slater scored a try with six minutes left to give Queensland a 16-12 win over New South Wales last night in the State of Origin opener between the often bitter Australian rugby league rivals.
Andrew Johns' New South Wales State of Origin exile is over, with the rugby league great back in the fold a year after a racism row saw him banished from the Blues.
With friends like Billy Slater, it seems NSW fullback Jarryd Hayne doesn't need enemies.
Queensland halfback Johnathan Thurston is likely to have an extra week off before State of Origin II after he was charged over a heated verbal exchange with an NRL referee.
ARL chief executive Geoff Carr has refused to rule out the prospect of a State of Origin game being played in New Zealand at Auckland's Eden Park.
