Narrow win for Maroons

Winger Steve Bell's try broke the 6-6 deadlock with 16 minutes to go, although there appeared to be a forward pass in the lead-up.

The win, Queensland's first at Olympic headquarters in 12 visits, is their fourth straight triumph over their great rivals and the first time since 1989 that they have taken out consecutive Origin series.

In a tough match short on try-scoring opportunities and before a crowd of 76,924, NSW bombarded the Queensland line in the early stages of the second half, but couldn't find the try that would have edged them ahead.

Instead it was the Maroons who soaked up the pressure before going ahead 10-6 through Bell's contentious four-pointer.

Referee Shayne Hayne missed a forward pass from Carl Webb to Steve Price before Johnathan Thurston set Bell up with a lovely grubber kick into the corner. The visitors held on for the final 16 minutes to claim a well-deserved victory.

Things started well for NSW in a match it had to win to keep the series alive. Full-back Brett Stewart's dream debut began in the ninth minute when he slipped into dummy-half following a fine run from Andrew Ryan.

Stewart then dummied and sneaked under Karmichael Hunt's tackle to plant the ball down. Stewart`s Manly team-mate Jamie Lyon kicked the conversion for a 6-0 lead.

Queensland was slow to get into the game but worked its way back into the contest after 21 minutes when hooker Cameron Smith went down the blindside and dribbled a pass out for Greg Inglis to score his fifth try in three Origin matches. Thurston was on target with the conversion, levelling it at 6-6.

In a second half of few chances, it was Queensland who broke the stalemate with Bell's match-winner in the 64th minute.