When the stakes are high, the margin for error has to be low and taking opportunities is so often the fine line between success and failure.

Not taking advantage when their foot was on the pedal was NSW’s undoing in game one in Melbourne.

However, in an enthralling encounter at ANZ Stadium, Ricky Stuart’s side took the series to a decider in Brisbane, after making the most of Cooper Cronk’s 42nd-minute sin-binning.

While the Maroons halfback was in the sheds after preventing Todd Carney from scoring a certain try, the hosts saw Brett Stewart and Josh Morris run in four-pointers to open up a 16-6 lead to lay the platform for a narrow win.

But it was a very different story in the opening stanza, with Ricky Stuart’s men dominating for long periods, but only having Stewart’s 26th-minute opener to show for their Herculean efforts.

It looked set to be the most slender of leads at the interval, when Cronk dispatched a tricky, but catchable bomb in the direction of NSW winger Akuila Uate a minute before the break.

Inexplicably, the Newcastle man let the ball bounce in front of him and Ben Hannant scampered under the posts, giving Johnathan Thurston the easiest of opportunities to give his side a scarcely deserved lead.

The try stunned the crowd of over 83,000, whose minds no doubt drifted back to Etihad Stadium last month, where their side’s early dominance was reined in by a side who know how to finish matches.

Cronk’s return saw the Maroons fight back. Greg Inglis increased his Origin try-scoring record to 14, with 18 minutes remaining.

And with Thurston and Cronk’s kicking game teasing and tormenting the desperate Blues it looked only a matter of time before they broke Stuart’s heart once more.

But with the tireless Robbie Farah clocking up 64 tackles, the Blues just held on as the record crowd roared them home to round yet another breathless occasion.