Votes are in: The greatest Origin teams of all
Immortal Arthur Beetson and modern-day greats Cooper Cronk, Paul Gallen and Darren Lockyer are among a host of unlucky players after fans chose their all-time Maroons and Blues teams.
After more than 20,000 votes were cast on NRL.com and Wide World of Sports in conjunction with the Sydney Morning Herald, two teams have been chosen, stacked with all-time greats.
However, some legendary players have failed to make the starting side for the all-time Blues and Maroons teams.
Lockyer and Beetson - largely considered the father of State of Origin - missed out on the run-on team but still secured spots on the bench.
Cronk was left out of the Maroons 17 altogether despite enjoying a 72 per cent winning rate in the 22 Origin matches he played.
With Origin legends Wally Lewis and Johnathan Thurston commanding places as Queensland's starting halves, Cronk was the unlucky man to miss out.
Immortal Mal Meninga was chosen in the centres for Queensland alongside Greg Inglis and was also named the Maroons' greatest coach after overseeing their golden era of successive series wins from 2006-13.
The fan-voted NSW team has also been chosen, with long-time skipper Paul Gallen failing to win a spot in the starting side. He did land a spot on the bench.
Bradley Clyde was named at lock, with Glenn Lazarus and Paul Harragon the two props.
Among the notable selections for the Blues was that of cult hero Eric Grothe. The Guru played nine Origin matches, finishing with a 4-5 record.
A particular feature of a hypothetical match between these teams would come in the centres. The sight of Meninga and Inglis teaming up against Laurie Daley and Mark Gasnier would be a sight to behold.
Fan-voted greatest Origin teams of all-time announced
A team of experts including Channel Nine's Origin greats Darren Lockyer, Billy Slater, Andrew Johns and Brad Fittler also selected their squads.
The legends' NSW team will be announced before Origin II on November 11 with the Queensland team unveiled on the night of Origin III on November 18.
People who entered their greatest Origin team had the option to enter a draw to win a fantastic Weber Store prize pack valued at $3500. Congratulations to the lucky winner Alan Posselt from Regents Park in Queensland, who takes home the prize.
