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.

8. 1995 - "Queenslander!"

As much as NSW Blues fans hate to admit it, there is something different about Queensland come Origin time.

No matter how passionate the Blues and NSW may be, for want of a better word, Queenslanders are just different.

Nothing epitomises that more than the 1995 State of Origin series, and nothing displays their grit and want-to-win at any cost than game one.

Marked by the screams of 'Queenslander' by Billy Moore as the team walked out, the 1995 Qld Maroons were underdogs of the highest regard.

With commentator-turned coach Paul Vautin coaching his first game and the team being selected from an extremely limited pool with players in the Super League being ineligible.

Queenslanders and the 'underdog' label go together like cookies and cream.

The first try-less State of Origin game in history, the less-talented Queensland dragged the Blues through the mud.

A kick for goal off the back of a high-tackle penalty against Paul Harrigan would prove crucial as the QLD Maroons came out on top of the NSW Blues 2-0.

A last second dash for the try-line by the Blues was on the cards, but they were once again turned away by the desperate Queensland Defence.

Against all odds, the Maroons out-muscled and out-hustled the Blues into one of the grittiest victories in history. How annoying.