State of Origin 2016: Game 1 Score and Recap for Blues vs. Maroons

Queensland took the upper hand in the 2016 State of Origin Series on Wednesday after a sole try from Dane Gagai guided the Maroons to a 6-4 victory in Game 1 of this year's contest at ANZ Stadium. 

Boyd Cordner clinched the first try of the match after Johnathan Thurston had kicked the Maroons into an early lead, but a reply from Gagai just before the interval was enough to earn the win in an agonisingly close affair.

Victory in the opener puts Queensland in the ascendancy for the rest of the series and means they're well on their way to claiming back-to-back series triumphs following the Blues' win of 2014.

Australian rugby journalist Beth Newman voiced her opinion that New South Wales were the better team despite the defeat following a scoreless last 40 minutes in Sydney:

It was reported in the build-up to Wednesday's clash that New South Wales' game plan had been leaked to the opposition, per the Sydney Morning Herald.

If those reports were indeed genuine, it certainly didn't show at the beginning of the clash, but it was the referees who also had a big influence in the early exchanges of what was a stop-start affair.

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Thurston's 15th-minute penalty drove Queensland into the first points of the match, but it was only 10 minutes later that a Cordner run from close range resulted in the first try of the clash.

James Maloney's dummy run into enemy territory did a fine job of raking the Maroons defence inside, creating the space needed for Sydney Roosters star Cordner to make the impact, per Tabcomau Media:

Adam Reynolds couldn't add the conversion from out wide, and it proved to be a big miss as Dane Gagai responded for the Maroons with a try of his own just before the half-time hooter.

Darius Boyd helped in weaving the ball over to the right flank, and the ANZ Stadium erupted as Gagai floated over for what ended up looking like a simple score, as shown by the National Rugby League Twitter account:

A two-point lead to Queensland's name at the break ensured coach Kevin Walters had the simpler team talk, with the Maroons hoping to use their first period as a building block for the test to come.

Thurston picked up on his side's defence as a particular point of focus in the opening 40 minutes:

Both teams made a rapid start after play resumed, and just as the opening period took its time in building, the tensions were high amid a scoreless first 25 minutes in the second half.

The Blues also suffered a big knock when Michael Morgan was forced off with concussion after 50 minutes, which may put the rest of his series in some doubt, per Fox Sports:

State of Origin veteran Paul Gallen was predictably among the front-line chargers for the Blues, who could hold out a lot of hope for what their opening try would yield based on recent series results, per OptaJason:

The Blues almost reclaimed the lead when a Josh Morris effort resulted in the referee going upstairs for a review, but his effort was found to have been pulled up short of the line with a little over 10 minutes remaining.

A couple of questionable kicks from Reynolds were contrasted by the string-pulling Thurston, who turned NSW full-back Matt Moylan around expertly and gave Queensland their chances to surge up the field.

In the end, the Maroons didn't need another try to seal their victory, and they'll make their way to Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on June 22 hoping to put the finishing touches on another series win.

Thurston played a key hand in leading the team to victory at ANZ Stadium, and his kicking magic is bound to be another major factor in Game 2, where the tamed Blues are under immense pressure to improve their attack.