Fresh off missing a combined 58 tackles as a team and being thoroughly outplayed Origin I, Queensland skipper Cameron Smith pulled no punches.
Tedesco, who was impressive throughout, denied Matt Gillett with a superb last-ditch tackle before stopping Dane Gagai seconds later to keep the Blues' 24-point advantage intact.
Maroons rookie Dylan Napa wasn't impressed with his team's performance admitting the Blues wanted it more.
The game started quick, with a try in the sixth minute to the Blues via Maloney (deftly converted), with no tries until Oates took a attractive kick from Cronk and scored a try for Queensland in the 37th minute, with Smith missing the kick.
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The Blues can wrap up the season in Sydney after a 28-4 victory at Suncorp Stadium, dominating virtually every facet of play in what many have interpreted as the end of Queensland's wondrous era.
Maloney converted to give NSW a 6-0 lead.
"NSW have got that tag at the moment and probably rightly so with the changes to our side". Pearce repeatedly put up the high ball to test Oates, but the Queensland winger was consistently up to the task.
The first half. Wow.
If they lose this year's series (which many Blues fans hope won't happen), it would be the first time since 1987 in which they have done so after winning the opening game in Brisbane.
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It was also a hard night for Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the Scottish National Party, who lost 21 seats (about 40% of her total). The pound has fallen further after British election results showed the Conservative party lost its majority.
In contrast no Queensland forward ran 120m.
But Cameron Smith, playing his 40th Origin, uncharacteristically botched the conversion.
Given NSW's midfield edge, the Maroons would have accepted a two-point half-time deficit.
But NSW finished the half with a try started and finished by Pearce after Wade Graham and Tedesco combined in the lead-up play. "There's something about Origin that makes him tick".
After the restart Hayne was nearly over as Dane Gagai dropped a high ball, but he could not quite hold the ball and the chance went begging.
Fifita was named man of the match just ahead of fullback James Tedesco.
His 55th-minute try sealed the result and summed up NSW's night when Justin O'Neill dropped the ball cold on his own goal line and the front-rower pounced to score and make it 22-4. James Tedesco was incredible in the second half, making scything runs and chopping Queensland down in defence on at least two occasions when they seemed certain to score. Next it was Hayne. Nationwide, viewership spiked at 4.423 million viewers, compared to a peak of 4.046 million on Wednesday night.
NSW captain Boyd Cordner believes Jarryd Hayne has become a key weapon for the Blues off the field as much as on it. The momentum shift was slight, nearly imperceptible, but in the pressure cooker of Origin, where every metre counts, the Blues began winning the middle-third.
Cronk made his debut in the first game of the 2010 series, midway through Queensland's decade of dominance.
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