Game III
Justin Hodges was ruled out of the Queensland side for game III after he re-tore his hamstring and was replaced by Josh Hannay. Steven Bell was also ruled out after he sustained a fractured cheekbone in game II.
After the heavy loss in game II the New South Wales selectors made five changes, bringing in Matt Cooper, Paul Gallen, Craig Gower, Timana Tahu and Ben Hornby as well as moving Matt King into the centres, Mark Gasnier to five-eighth and Luke Bailey into the starting side.
| 5 July | New South Wales | 14–16 | Queensland | Telstra Dome, Melbourne Attendance: 54,833 Referee/s: Steven Clark Man of the Match: Brent Tate |
| Eric Grothe, Jr. (8 - 2t) Matt King (4 - 1t) Brett Hodgson (2 - 1g) |
(Report) | (4 - 1t) Darren Lockyer (4 - 1t) Adam Mogg (4 - 1t) Brent Tate (4 - 2g) Clinton Schifcofske |
Game III was held at Telstra Dome, Melbourne, and was the first decider played at a neutral venue. Some controversial video referring decisions in the first ten minutes of the second half saw Queensland trailing 14-4 with ten minutes remaining. Queensland however scored two late tries to take the match and series, winning 16-14.
- The Wally Lewis Medal for player of the series was awarded to Darren Lockyer
- The Ron McAuliffe Medal for Queensland player of the series was awarded to Darren Lockyer
Read more about this topic: 2006 State Of Origin Series
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