LIVE: Legend confirms Origin expansion dreams

Blues adjunct manager Ruan Sims says NRLW players are hoping to person a three-game Origin bid akin to their antheral counterparts successful the adjacent future.

"We are truly looking guardant to tonight," she told Nine's TODAY.

"It's an breathtaking accidental expanding to 2 games this year, and hopefully successful the precise adjacent aboriginal we'll spot it spell to three.

"Just being capable to play connected a prime stadium similar CommBank, I deliberation that shows however acold the women's crippled has come."

The wage for the women has been lifted to $15,000 per crippled this year, 50 per cent of the men's wages, which is besides encouragement for the women's game.

"It's a fantastic measurement forward," Sims said.

"I deliberation the girls were truly amazed erstwhile it came through, they recovered retired very, precise late, but highly grateful for the measurement up. I'm truly arrogant of them and grateful that the NRL is taking that on."

All eyes volition beryllium connected young Blues halfback Jesse Southwell tonight, with the 18-year-old acceptable to commencement successful the No.6 jersey.

She's already made rather the content connected her teammates, particularly Blues co-captain Isabelle Kelly.

"Some of the accomplishment that immoderate of the girls person [now], you look astatine Jesse Southwell: 18 years aged and her accomplishment acceptable is enormous. Having the pathways present that we have, those girls tin travel done and beryllium assured that they're going to play successful the Blues jersey oregon successful the NRLW," she said.

"That's what we person ever wanted, and that's what the girls earlier america person ever wanted, was to make pathways for radical similar maine and Kez (Blues co-captain Kezie Apps) and girls a batch younger ... Origin has been the biggest landmark which has made that happen."

The Blues are the blistery favourites up of tonight's Origin opener, presently paying $1.39 to instrumentality retired Game 1, per SportsBet. Queensland is presently a $3.00 outsider.

NSW duo Jaime Chapman and Jessica Sergis are the favourites to people the archetypal effort of the match, with some presently paying $10.50.

Emily Bass and Tamika Upton are rated Queensland's champion chances, with the brace paying $13.00 for the archetypal effort of the match.

The over-under people for the contention is acceptable astatine 34.5. 

New South Wales leads the ledger 3-2 implicit Queensland since the fixture was recognised arsenic State of Origin successful 2018.

The Blues won past year's contention successful a high-scoring brushwood featuring 3 tries apiece.

Here's however the results person gone implicit the past 5 years:

2022: New South Wales 20 def. Queensland 14

2021: Queensland 8 def. New South Wales 6

2020: Queensland 24 def. New South Wales 18

2019: New South Wales 14 def. Queensland 4

2018: New South Wales 16 def. Queensland 10

A large stroke for New South Wales with prima winger Tiana Penitani officially ruled retired of Origin I with a hamstring injury.

"Penitani suffered a flimsy hamstring strain precocious successful the week of the team's preparations and was fixed each accidental to beryllium her fitness, but was ruled retired of the lucifer aft not being capable to implicit the Captain's Run connected Wednesday," the Blues said successful a connection connected Thursday.

It remains to beryllium seen who Blues manager Kylie Hilder selects successful Penitani's absence, with the 27-year-old possessing a wealthiness of Origin experience.

She has played successful the 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 series, scoring a effort successful the 2020 contest. Big shoes to fill.

Good day rugby league fans, and invited to Wide World of Sports' LIVE sum of the opening lucifer successful this year's Women's State of Origin series.

There is simply a spot of past this year, with tonight's lucifer the archetypal of 2 matches successful the series, the archetypal clip aggregate matches person been played successful a Women's Origin since its inception successful 2018.

The Blues caput into contiguous holding the Origin shield, but the Maroons are hopeless to triumph it back.

It's not each implicit for tonight's loser though, with a 2nd crippled connected the skyline successful a substance of weeks!

It should beryllium a thriller truthful strap yourselves successful arsenic we bring you each the latest quality from the pre-match earlier the unrecorded enactment gets underway.