When you’ve lost an unprecedented six successive State of Origin series and are staring down the barrel of a seventh, any erosion of NSW self-belief would be understandable.
While a mighty Queensland side basks in confidence, built on the back of 14 victories in the last 19 matches, the Blues are desperately clinging to hope.
Hope that hometown advantage at ANZ Stadium can help them avenge last month’s controversial 18-10 defeat in Melbourne.
Hope that the rub of the refereeing they feel went against them at Etihad Stadium will go their way.
And hope that arguably the finest sporting team assembled on these shores since the all-conquering Australian cricket side of the 1990s to the mid 2000s can be tamed.
Just as Steve Waugh, Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne and Ricky Ponting rose to the big occasion so often in the baggy green, Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Greg Inglis and until recently Darren Lockyer, have done likewise in the Maroons jumper.
It’s no wonder NSW coach Ricky Stuart is doing his best to preach the need for positivity to his players.
No man feels the pain of defeat more than the former Kangaroos coach, who banned his players from talking after the defeat in Melbourne in protest at the calls that went against his side.
The 45-year-old has since ordered the players to forget all that and focus on the positives they can take from one of the better performances by a Blues side in recent years.
But Stuart is keenly aware that only a win will suffice this time.
“The two things I really harped on after the game was not to take any negatives out of that changeroom through disappointment,” Stuart said.
“The other thing was they could not lose one per cent of the belief they gave me before the game, because I believed we were going to win that match.
“That’s the belief that every player gave me through their preparation, through their body language, through their mental psyche. We just had a fantastic feel about our team and the result itself.
“But they don’t put `nearly’ on the actual shield – they put the series wins or losses.”
Unlike the Blues, Queensland have kept a settled side for the best part of their six years of dominance.
Stuart pinpointed continuity as something he wanted in his side and apart from the injury to Tony Williams, utility Jamie Buhrer is the only member of the 17-man squad in game one to be axed.
Williams’ bench spot is taken by Manly teammate Anthony Watmough, a surprising omission in Melbourne, with giant Penrith prop Tim Grant the only new face in the camp.
Once again, Queensland keep the same side.
Grant’s inclusion sees workhorse skipper Paul Gallen restored to the back-row, and gives the Blues’ huge size in the front-row alongside the 194cm James Tamou.
NSW won this corresponding fixture 18-8 last year before going down 34-24 in an emotion-charged decider at Suncorp Stadium, where Darren Lockyer was farewelled in style by Mal Meninga’s men.
Much has been made of Queensland passion being greater than NSW’s but Stuart is confident a crowd of over 80,000 at ANZ Stadium will make it a fevered environment his players can thrive in.
“It certainly doesn’t mean we’ll just go out there and win,” he said.
“The one thing I can promise the players is they’ll probably play in front of an atmosphere and an environment that they’ve never been in before.
“I just feel it in my bones as to what this crowd will be like next week.”
Meninga denied his side received a wake-up call in Melbourne, and said he was bemused at the criticism aimed at the referees after game one.
“Our execution can be better but our attitude and commitment was at the right level. It had to be to win the footy game,” Meninga said.
“The referees have copped a beating in the last few days, which is unfortunate.
“I am confident where the referees are at. I am not worried about that (officials) as long as we play as well as we can.”