Ahead of Wednesday's State of Origin decider, take a look back at some previous game three classics...
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Since full-time was blown in game two at ANZ Stadium, the 2011 decider has been billed as the biggest game in State of Origin history.
It is certainly the most-anticipated game three in recent memory, as the New South Wales Blues look to ruin Darren Lockyer's farewell on Queensland soil. Here we look back at some classic deciders in the history of the series...
1991 - Farewell to The King
No name is more synonymous with Queensland rugby league than that of 'The King', Wally Lewis.
Lewis captained the Maroons in all but one of his 31 appearances and when it was announced just prior to game three in 1991 that King Wally would be hanging up his Origin boots after the game, the stakes were immediately raised.
There was nothing between the two teams in that series. Both sides had won at home, Queensland by two points in the opener and New South Wales by the same margin in game two.
So it was fitting that the return to Lang Park for game three would dish up another classic.
It was announced to the crowd just before kick-off that it was to be The King's swansong. The home side led 8-4 at the break but the Blues hit the front in the second half and looked set to spoil the party, leading 12-8 late in the game.
But when Dale Shearer crossed out wide it was left to the departing legend's heir, Mal Meninga, to do something no one else had managed that night - kick a goal. Big Mal complied and gave Queensland the 14-12 lead they would take to full-time, ensuring that Lewis went out hoisting the shield one final time.
2001 - The return of Alfie
Allan Langer headed home from club duties with Warrington Wolves in the English Super League to join the Maroons in camp for the decider at Brisbane's ANZ Stadium.
The legendary half-back had stunned the game by announcing his retirement midway through the 1999 campaign - only to return to action in England.
Despite Maroons coach Wayne Bennett being questioned over the decision to bring back a 35-year-old for such a crucial game, Langer set up three first-half tries to have the match, and the series, all but sewn up inside 40 minutes.
In the second half he added his name to the scoresheet as Queensland inflicted a 40-14 belting of the Blues. Langer was tempted to return back to the Brisbane Broncos the following year too, when he also became the oldest player to appear in a State of Origin fixture.
2002 - Tallis inspires last draw
Aside from the personal highlights and career milestones, nothing makes for a more memorable Origin decider than a good old-fashioned thriller.
While the introduction of golden point means there will be no chance of a drawn decider on Wednesday night, that wasn't the case back in 2002 when the series shifted to Sydney for game three.
Just five weeks earlier NSW had blown Queensland off the park at the same venue before Lote Tuqiri carried the Maroons to a series-levelling victory in Queensland.
Back in Sydney for the decider, Gordon Tallis provided one of the indelible images in Origin history, picking up Blues full-back Brett Hodgson from 15 metres infield and slinging him over the sideline to give Queensland an early lift.
The game was close throughout as teams traded tries, but NSW looked to have landed the killer blow when Jason Moodie crossed with three minutes left and the Blues hit the front 18-14.
Then, channelling the Mark Coyne miracle from eight years prior, Queensland launched a final foray with a minute left on the clock, as Langer threw a cut-out pass that found Dane Carlaw on the NSW 40m line.
Carlaw brushed off Moodie to break the line, then skipped out of a last-gasp tackle from Hodgson to level the scores as the siren sounded. Knowing they needed only a draw the retain the shield, Tuqiri's conversion attempt was rendered insignificant as the game finished 18-all and the series had, for a second and final time, been decided with a tied game three.
2004 - Fittler's second chance
In 2004, the final year of his NRL career, Fittler was lured back to Origin by long-time mentor Phil Gould as injury struck down a host of first-choice NSW halves.
Fittler's return was a loss in game two at Suncorp Stadium, but that only served in setting up a deciding game three in his home town, with Fittler afforded a rare chance to rewrite the script for his Origin farewell.
In perhaps his finest performance for his state, Fittler orchestrated a 36-14 series-clinching win with a totally revamped NSW side.
The best being saved was for last too, as Freddie charged down a Darren Lockyer kick to run away and score the game's final try.
2006 - Lockyer changes history
When it comes to game-three thrillers, it seems poetic that perhaps the most heart-racing and significant of all belongs to the man who will bow out on Wednesday.
The 2006 series hung in the balance after the Blues and Maroons had both won at home to be all square heading into the first decider played at a neutral venue.
Melbourne's Telstra Dome was the scene for a game that, not unlike the current series, had many people suggesting the future of the Origin was on the line, with Queensland facing an unprecedented fourth consecutive series loss.
It looked as though destiny was against the Maroons on that night; the Queenslanders were out on their feet by half-time and when a video referee blunder put NSW ahead 14-4, the writing was on the wall.
But in what would become a familiar scenario for the years that followed, Queensland's world-class halves pairing rose to the challenge.
In the 71st minute Johnathan Thurston broke through to send Brent Tate away for a length-of-the field try, then three minutes later it was Lockyer who pounced on an ill-directed Hodgson pass, escaping the clutches of Luke Bailey to crash over for a try that would set Queensland on their run of success.
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