James Tedesco’s New South Wales reprieve has him on the edge of a special kind of Origin greatness

As New South Wales locked down the final stages of their preparation for State of Origin I, James Tedesco began what little run in he can have to what may prove to be his finest hour.

That’s a heavy thing to put on any player, let alone one who will only get two training sessions with a side before an Origin series opener, but if any Blues player in recent times can handle it, it’s Tedesco.

The Camden product is one of New South Wales’ very few stone-cold, slam-dunk, no-doubt greats of recent years. He’s the only current NRL player who would make an all-time Blues side and he’s arguably the state’s best player since Andrew Johns.

On Tuesday, Tedesco and the rest of Michael Maguire’s side went through their paces at the state’s Centre of Excellence in Homebush. In the gym area inside the building, right next to the field, the wall is emblazoned with a giant image of Tedesco scoring the series winning try in the final seconds of the 2019 decider.

It’s meant to be a reminder of what it takes to succeed at rugby league’s highest level – a testament to the benefits of the relentless intensity and the boundless desire to succeed which Origin rewards so well.

Those qualities, which have been a part of Tedesco’s game since he made his Blues debut in 2016, is why the decision to initially overlook him for Dylan Edwards was not one anybody could take lightly.

Tedesco has won the Brad Fittler Medal as the Blues best player in a series three times, including in 2018 and 2019 when New South Wales claimed the shield.

He won the Wally Lewis Medal as the best player from either state in the latter year, should have won it ahead of Billy Slater in the former, and has as many man of the match awards as Brad Fittler, Laurie Daley, Danny Buderus and Paul Gallen combined.

It’s a hell of a thing to walk away from even accounting for Tedesco’s performances in the 2023 series, which were below his high standards, and for Edwards’ consistent excellence for Penrith during their three-straight premierships.

That decision was going to define the series for Maguire but Edwards unfortunate injury, a bitter blow for any player but one which hits harder for the whole-hearted Panther, flips the script in terms of legacy.

For whatever reason, New South Wales can take their legends for granted. Sometimes, the Blues faithful don’t quite know what they’ve got until it’s gone. Consistent excellence isn’t always as appealing as the lure of tomorrow because reality is anchored to the present but the possibilities of the future are endless.

In the end, Tedesco won’t miss a game. His incredible streak of consecutive Blues appearances will stretch to 23, extending his own state record. But everyone, including Tedesco himself, had made their peace with his exclusion and were ready to move on to whatever Edwards would bring as his replacement.

Now the stakes are even higher and a resurrection could be in the offing, like the Blues had with Brad Fittler in 2004 or Johns in 2005. They were both already among the Blues very best but their epic returns – Fittler’s from two series of representative retirement and Johns’ from a year out with injury – cemented their status among the greatest of all the Origin legends and on Wednesday night Tedesco has the chance to do the same.

Coming back from the brink, along with dealing with all the regular pressures of Origin, isn’t easy at the best of times and doing it on three days’ notice, with just two training sessions alongside one’s teammates, ups the degree of difficulty even further.

But if it can be done Tedesco is the person to back to do it. On Monday he went through his paces well during his first proper session with the team.

“It certainly gives the boys confidence, knowing there’s someone who’s been there and done it, better than most on that stage,” said Isaah Yeo.

“He’s been tremendous for NSW for a long time. It’s his 23rd game in a row, you don’t do that by chance, you do that by excelling in that jersey.

“I think it’s good for the boys to know they’ve got the confidence he’ll come in and do a wonderful job for us.

“At the same time, there’s no excuses for us, it’s happened for Queensland before in previous years where they’ve had late withdrawals, so, come Wednesday night, there’s no excuses.”

The Blues might still have a surprise or two to come before Wednesday. Whispers that Matt Burton will be elevated from 18th man to the bench just won’t go away and while Yeo said he would definitely be starting from the pine it would surprise few for him and Cam McInnes to swap places by kick-off.

But Tedesco’s track record at Origin makes him feel reliable – there’s a reason he’s jumped straight into equal second in most man of the match markets. His status among the Blue elite is already secured because you can’t change what’s already happened, which means he’s got nothing to lose and everything to gain. He is in that special place where Origin folklore is written, the tip of the spear, the edge of the knife, the very frontier of destiny. 

Tedesco is a player with an extraordinarily high baseline at this level and he’s coming off a resurgent season for the Roosters which has been based on him playing wider, which should make him a more effective strike weapon than he was in last year’s series. Time may be against him, but for players of his quality the deck is always stacked in their favour.

Three days isn’t much time. Neither is 80 minutes, in the grand scheme of things. But Tedesco has built his legend on making every second in the Blue jersey count. That’s why they’ve already put his face on a wall.