Game 3, 1986 State of Origin
July 1, 1986 · Lang Park, Brisbane
Game 3, 1986 State of Origin: New South Wales 18–16 Queensland, at Lang Park, Brisbane on July 1, 1986.
Attendance: 21,097
Dead rubber -- New South Wales had already clinched a 3-0 whitewash, its first-ever Origin sweep. Scores were level 16-16 at halftime; Michael O'Connor's late penalty goal, awarded after Wally Lewis was penalised for not clearing a ruck, sealed the win. Bryan Niebling (not Darryl Brohman, who played only Game II) started at second row this game, with Bob Lindner moving to lock -- resolved via the same follow-up research pass as Game II. No New South Wales interchange bench could be confirmed for this game.
Scorers
| New South Wales | Tries: O'Connor; Pearce; Tunks Goals: O'Connor (3/4) |
| Queensland | Tries: Belcher; Conescu; Kiss; Shearer |
Teams
| New South Wales | Queensland | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garry Jack | Fullback | Gary Belcher | 1 |
| 2 | Brian Johnston | Wing | Dale Shearer | 2 |
| 3 | Michael O'Connor | Centre | Mal Meninga | 3 |
| 4 | Chris Mortimer | Centre | Gene Miles | 4 |
| 5 | Eric Grothe | Wing | Chris Close | 5 |
| 6 | Brett Kenny | Five-eighth | Wally Lewis | 6 |
| 7 | Peter Sterling | Halfback | Mark Murray | 7 |
| 8 | Steve Roach | Prop | Brad Tessmann | 8 |
| 9 | Royce Simmons | Hooker | Greg Conescu | 9 |
| 10 | Peter Tunks | Prop | Cavill Heugh | 10 |
| 11 | Steve Folkes | Second Row | Bryan Niebling | 11 |
| 12 | Noel Cleal | Second Row | Gavin Jones | 12 |
| 13 | Wayne Pearce | Lock | Bob Lindner | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| Peter Jackson | 14 | |||
| Ian French | 15 | |||
| Ron Willey | Coach | Wayne Bennett | ||
Player of the Match
Brett Kenny (New South Wales)
Match officials
| Referee | Kevin Roberts |
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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