Game 1 of the 2022 State of Origin series kicks off on Wednesday night, and is set to be a cracker.

The battle between the NSW Blues and QLD Maroons never seems to disappoint... unless it's 2021 and you're a Queenslander. Nevertheless, there is a special kind of excitement that comes with the greatest rivalry in Australian sport.

We have Billy Slater up against Brad Fittler in the coaches box, Junior Paulo and Payne Haas facing off against Tino Fa'asuamaleaui and Josh Papalii and that isn't even the best of the match-ups.

While every game has its features whether it's a decider in Game 3 or a pivotal Game 2, there is a special electricity that comes with the unknown of the first game in a series.

There have been some fantastic games in the 42 years the series has been running. Most of the greats, like James Tedesco scoring in the final seconds of 2019's Game 3, come in series-winning games, but what about series openers?

Here are ten of the greatest Game 1s in State of Origin History.

6. 1991 - Queensland hold on in nail-biter

Only scoring one try each with a goal being the difference, this game is old-school State of Origin in the flesh.

Try-less through three quarters of the match, it was a tough and ugly affair. Unsurprisingly, it was the big man on the edge, Mal Meninga, who scored the first try of the match, barreling his way through Greg Alexander and Andrew Ettingshausen to score.

With only minutes left in the match, it was Alexander who fired a beautiful pass out to Laurie Daley in the centres. Daley grubbered for himself and scored in the corner.

The Blues coach had named Michael O'Connor for the kicking duties over Alexander, despite O'Connor not being the Manly Sea Eagles first-choice kicker, and only having kicked two goals in 1991.

This is a decision that would prove costly as the clock wound down to zero.

As O'Connor's sideline conversion of Daley's try sailed to the right of the post, the game was all-but over.

Unthinkably, the Maroons restart from Meninga went out on the full, providing the Blues with a penalty, a kick for goal from 50m out and their hearts in their throats.

This time, it was Alexander who took the kick.

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on which side you sit on, the kick never looked like going in. Queensland win.