Preamble

Jonathan Howcroft

Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of men’s State of Origin Game 3. Kick-off between Queensland and New South Wales at Suncorp Stadium is scheduled for 8.05pm AEST.

This midwinter Wednesday has already treated us to a Lionel Messi miracle, a Novak Djokovic Centre Court epic, and 40C temperatures in Le Tour, but trust me, the best is yet to come. Hubristic? Not a chance. This is a rivalry and spectacle that never fails to deliver.

For the third year in a row and the 25th occasion in Origin history Queensland and New South Wales require a deciding game to establish which heavyweight will take ownership of the shield.

The Maroons start as favourites. They have home advantage, a settled squad, a superior coach, and the wind in their sails following a comprehensive victory in Melbourne three weeks ago. The series would already be in the bag were it not for Kalyn Ponga’s indiscretion and James Tedesco’s brilliance in Sydney.

Laurie Daley is under the pump and his latest team selection does little to suggest that his latest stint as Blues coach has been spent following a meticulously prepared masterplan. Billy Slater, by contrast has made only one change to his starting XIII all series.

I’ll be back with final team lists and more shortly. Please send me your emails and keep me company throughout the evening. The address is jonathan.howcroft.freelance@theguardian.com.