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There's nothing like a State of Origin decider.
Those drama-filled pressure-packed contests have given viewers so many famous moments in the men's game and on Thursday night, the women finally got to have theirs.
It had all the hallmarks of a classic that we've seen so many times before — a NSW side that looks bigger, faster and stronger by the length of the straight, but the series still somehow goes down to the wire, and once again Queensland pulls out a masterful performance to win the shield.
It started from the opening minute, when the Maroons kicked early in the first set and game II hero Lauren Brown came up with a copybook tackle on Emma Tonegato, forcing the ball loose and laying the platform for the second-minute try that put them on the path to victory.
In driving rain, Queensland never relented, building a 16-0 lead, and repelling and frustrating the Blues in equal measure with impenetrable goal-line defence.
NSW's core of Jillaroos superstars were turned away again and again by Queensland's mad scramble.
Rookie Emmanita Paki, who was plucked from her day job at a sports shop in Rockhampton for her debut in Newcastle, is the only player who took the field in Townsville without a contract for the 2024 NRLW season.
The 21-year-old, who did not touch the ball in the opening half, came up with a trademark try-saving play on her seemingly unstoppable opposite winger when she scrambled in the 52nd minute to drive Jaime Chapman into touch.
Then, when NSW finally did score through Chapman's desperate and brilliant intercept and 90-metre sprint in the 59th minute, the 22,819-strong crowd in Townsville seized their chance for an Origin moment as they rose in one voice for a cry of "Queenslander!" as passionate and loud as that of a crowd twice its size.
"That was a pretty touch-and-go moment; if we didn't show up in defence that could have really turned. Chappo getting that try could have really kicked things off for them," Queensland captain Ali Brigginshaw said after the game.
"The 'Queenslander' chant was unbelievable and even being able to enjoy it that last minute, that was pretty cool."
As the siren sounded, the joy on the Queenslanders' faces and the misery on NSW's felt fitting of the sort of stereotypical decider that Origin mythology has been built around for decades.
The Maroons were the reigning champs, but still claimed the underdog tag. They dropped game I in perfect conditions in Brisbane, then won away from home and in the decider in driving rain. Brigginshaw was past it, then steered her team home as she has so many times since her first game for Queensland 15 years ago.
In the ABC Sport commentary box, former Queensland captain Karina Brown could not hold back the tears.
"I'm just so proud of the girls," she said.
"I know I'm meant to be impartial, but as a Queenslander … It just fills me with so much pride. It'll mean everything to the girls."
After decades of being given whatever scraps were thrown their way by rugby league higher-ups — including last year's farcical two-game series — proper investment in the women's game made a three-game series not just viable, but a must-have.
"It's magical," Queensland coach Tahnee Norris said.
"It's something we've been working towards for such a long time and to finally get the three-game series and to win it like that, it's a really special moment."
A record crowd in the series opener at Lang Park was broken in the next game in wretched conditions in Newcastle, and followed by another sellout in Townsville, all with unprecedented TV viewing figures.
It wasn't long after full-time that thoughts turned to what this record-breaking series could mean for the future — selling out the Sydney Football Stadium? Or Lang Park? Or Stadium Australia?
"That's happening. That's more than achievable," Brown said.
"The sky's the limit."
The current situation is unrecognisable compared to when Brown started.
Queensland's first women's Origin skipper only got into rugby league at the age of 21 because there had been no junior pathways for her.
"I didn't even know there was an Australian Jillaroos rugby league team when I first started," she said.
"I felt ripped off that I didn't know I could watch heroes play women's rugby league, and now it's on stage for everyone to enjoy.
"We just want to see more. We want the NRL to keep giving us these great timeslots, these great games, and now in NRLW as well."
The foray into a full-fledged series was absolutely the right call, but no-one can deny there is room for improvement.
The completion rate across the series was 71.5 per cent as the error count ticked up, but that's hardly surprising considering the conditions in Newcastle and Townsville, the fact the NRLW preseason only started during the series, and only Queensland had a state competition to get any competitive footy reps in.
Exactly the best path towards progress for the women's game is up for debate, and there are a lot of chicken or egg, cart and horse conversations being had.
Mandating a smaller ball for the women's game is a potentially immediate measure that has been backed by the likes Millie Elliott and Ruan Sims.
NSW co-captain Isabelle Kelly and coach Kylie Hilder called for the series to be played during or after the NRLW season, when players are match fit and have been in proper training systems for months. The decider was played almost a month before the 2024 NRLW season starts on July 25.
"If we want to see the best at Origin level, they need to play week in and week out at an elite level," Hilder said.
"That'll improve the standard of the game. I think the games have been great, but if we can work it somehow that they're back in clubland … it needs to be really looked at."
Hilder backed the game to expand from 35-minute halves to 40 minutes to match the men, but Norris cautioned against doing that without laying the groundwork.
"We need to make sure we're continually growing the sport and get it professional so these girls are training full-time," she said.
"If we're expecting 80-minute games we need to make sure we look after these girls and provide an environment where they're training full-time to be able to do that."
The NRL's eyes have rarely been bigger than their stomachs when it comes to expanding the women's game.
While that did lead to the farcical two-game Women's Origin last year, the higher-ups have also been praised for slowly and carefully growing the NRL Women's competition — sticking with four teams for three seasons, expanding to six for two years, then jumping to 10 in 2023, and finally 12 this season.
As the game continues to grow and stadiums continue to sell out, the NRL has one of those good problems on its hands as it tries to find the best schedule to squeeze in another hugely popular product.
But the biggest growth will only come when players are paid to train.
"This is still semi-professional football. Imagine when we can actually work full-time in the game; skill sets are only going to improve," Brown said.
"We've now got competition all through grassroots. The kids coming through, they're entering our program as 17, 18-year-olds — they're strong, they're fit, their game awareness is so much higher.
"I'm so excited where this game's headed."
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