History
Player eligibility for the Origin Series is based on the player's region of birth. Players born outside of Yorkshire and Lancashire are also eligible for selection, based on the region where they first played rugby league at professional level.
"War of the Roses" games began in 1895, but ceased in 1989. They were revived in 2001 under the name of the Origin Series, inspired by the success of State of Origin matches in Australia between New South Wales and Queensland.
The Origin Series was reduced to a one-off Origin Game in 2003 due to the British hosting the touring Australia, New Zealand A and as well the kick off of the Rugby League European Nations Cup. So together with the Challenge Cup, WCC and Rugby Super League, the RFL felt that too many Origin matches would be too much strain on the top players. The tournament was then rested due to apathy from rugby league supporters.
Read more about this topic: Rugby League War Of The Roses
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