Nine will broadcast Ampol State of Origin III: The Decider live and free on Channel 9 and 9Now on Wednesday, 8 July, as Queensland and New South Wales meet at a sold-out Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane with the series on the line.
Coverage begins at 7 pm AEST in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, with earlier start times in Adelaide (6:30 pm on 9Gem HD, 7 pm on Channel 9HD and 9Now) and Perth (5 pm on 9Gem HD, 5:30 pm on Channel 9HD and 9Now).
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Coverage team
James Bracey will host Nine’s coverage, joined by Andrew Johns, Cameron Smith, Phil Gould, Darren Lockyer, Johnathan Thurston, Sam Thaiday and Brad Fittler.
Danika Mason will provide sideline updates alongside Fittler and Lockyer, while Allana Ferguson will join the panel to analyse key match-ups. Mathew Thompson will call the game in the commentary box, flanked by former state captains Johns and Smith.
9Now will also offer Battle View, a multi-view live stream allowing viewers to follow the main broadcast alongside dedicated feeds of halfbacks Nathan Cleary (NSW) and Sam Walker (Queensland).
Feature content and build-up
Pregame features will include Cobbo’s Comeback, in which Thurston examines the rise of Maroons winger Selwyn Cobbo, and The Suncorp Heist, featuring former game-three winners Benny Elias, Anthony Minichello and Jake Trbojevic backing the Blues to win the decider in Brisbane.
Jai Arrow will carry the Ampol State of Origin shield onto Suncorp Stadium ahead of kick-off, and 9Now will publish a 20-minute mini-match wrap after the final siren.
Build-up programming includes 100% Footy on Monday, 6 July at 8:45 pm AEST, featuring South Sydney’s Latrell Mitchell alongside Pat Carrigan and Liam Martin from Origin camp, Freddy and the Eighth on Tuesday, 7 July, with Brad Fittler and Andrew Johns, and Six Tackles with Gus previewing the match with a Maroons legend as a guest.