The margin was just a few pixels in the video review bunker, but it was enough for New South Wales to secure the Women’s State of Origin shield, winning game two 14-10 over Queensland in Brisbane.

The result looked set to flip when Maroons winger Jasmine Peters crossed in the right corner in the final minute, triggering wild scenes among the Queenslanders on the field and in the Suncorp Stadium stands, filled with a healthy crowd of 23,846.

Yet when the decision was reviewed, Peters’ toe was swept over the line in the tackle by a desperate Teagan Berry, who had initially appeared beaten. In the end she was celebrated a Blues hero as NSW lifted the shield for the second time in a row.

“I was stressing big time,” Blues halfback Jesse Southwell said, watching back the replay of the dramatic moment on Channel Nine. “Far out, that was so cool.” Veteran Kezie Apps said she just wanted to kiss Berry. “Our heart was in our chest there on that last little bit,” she said.

Maroons halfback Lauren Brown went from preparing for a match-winning conversion, to commiserating in defeat. “Obviously heartbreak in the end,” she said. “Jazzy looked good going over there, I thought we may have been in. I was starting to prep myself to kick for the win but unfortunately that wasn’t the case, the Blues were too good in the end.”

The moment encapsulated the Blues’ desperate efforts to defend their lead in the dying moments. On the same patch of grass as Berry’s try-saver, Southwell had pulled off her own, barely 10 minutes before. Again it was Peters with the ball, and again she looked certain to score. But in a one-on-one the Blues halfback somehow stopped Peters’ momentum, swung around and planted her body underneath as Peters reached down with the ball.

Thanks to the heroics of Berry and Southwell – who also kicked the winning field goal in game one – the Blues have now won back-to-back State of Origin shields, consigning the pain of the 2024 series to the past. That year they won game one, but allowed the sprouts of a Maroons’ resurgence to take root in game two, when Brown’s field goal changed the momentum and helped secure the series. On Thursday, again they let the Maroons back into the contest, but this time they held firm at the death to secure the result.

The nail-biting finish was hard to imagine given the one-sided opening on the inclement evening. NSW threatened to drown home hopes with a dominant opening period, aided by a succession of Maroons errors. By the time Blues hooker Keeley Nizza crossed after 22 minutes, the visitors were up 8-0 and had enjoyed two-thirds of possession.

The Maroons could only blame themselves, having repeatedly handed the ball back to their opponents. Indeed, they had completed only three sets to that point for a success rate of less than 50%.

But when they looked to the heavens, they found their answer. A towering bomb from the halfway line from the superboot of Maroons’ five-eighth Chantay Kiria-Ratu swirled away from Blues’ fullback Abbi Church, forcing an error on her line with eight minutes before the break.

Three sets on the NSW line later, and Tamika Upton split them open. She played sharply to the blind from dummy half, in a flash putting Rory Owen through a gap between the stunned pair of Apps and Jaime Chapman. A Brown conversion brought the score back to 8-6, and the series was alive.

The Maroons surged into the lead early in the second half. Hooker Jada Ferguson burrowed over, rewarding Queensland’s decision to resist settling for two points from a penalty. Instead they took a tap, and seconds later were in the lead, even if Brown couldn’t add the extras.

The Maroons might have had their nose in front, but before their mouth and ears could join them the Blues were back in control. Jess Sergis powered through the defence, taking Rory Owen over the line to flip the scoreboard. The sideline conversion by Jesse Southwell, in pouring rain, was pure. But it was nothing compared to her late try-saving tackle – an all-time Origin marvel.