Dyldam Parramatta Eels and NSW Blues fullback Jarryd Hayne has shaken off a 32-8 loss at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday night and celebrated his first series win in State of Origin.
The Maroons staged a convincing win on home soil, but with the series already decided, Hayne said there was nothing but pride among the NSW Blues brothers.
“We’re the champs, that’s it,” Hayne said.
“We defended our backsides off for 71 minutes and just the amount of possession [for Queensland] at the end there got the better of us.”
“We fought tooth and nail.”
And for Hayne, the long-awaited series win was all the sweeter after the pre-Origin suggestions that the Blues were unlikely to break Queensland eight season dominance.
“When we look back at the amount of pressure at the start of this series, that’s something that is special about this victory: knowing how hard we had to work,” Hayne said.
“The media were calling our halves duds, we couldn’t win, we were the longest odds in Origin history.”
“We had so many things against us and the character and the fortitude that we showed is why we won and why we’re the champs.”
