State of Origin pitch invaders make it past 22 security guards to momentarily stop play
State of Origin pitch invaders somehow get past 22 guards to temporarily halt play – as fans joke they ‘have more game time than Clint Gutherson’
Two pitch invaders stopped play in the dying minutes of New South Wales’ 24-10 victory over Queensland in the State of Origin final.
Security at Sydney’s Accor Stadium was redfaced when the two intruders – one of them wearing a New South Wales shirt – briefly interrupted the game in the second half as they ran onto the pitch.
One of the intruders appeared to get very close to Blues star Jake Trbojevic before being wrestled to the ground by security.
The incident was met with disbelief on social media, where one fan tweeted a photo showing 22 security guards lining the pitch and wondered how the two intruders managed to evade them all.
“Twenty-two security guards in this photo… field intruder ran past them all,” the supporter tweeted.
Two pitch invaders temporarily halted play in the closing stages of Origin III in Sydney
One of the two intruders was wearing a New South Wales jersey and was stopped by security
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Most of them didn’t move a muscle. Stop hiring fighters.’
Some supporters, meanwhile, jokingly suggested that the two intruders had seen more action than Clint Gutherson.
The Parramatta captain was surprisingly selected as the bench utility role for Game III despite last playing for the Blues three years ago.
Gutherson had to wait until the 77th minute to come onto the field, which led some supporters to suggest ironically that he had taken a leaf from the invaders’ book.
Is Gutho the pitch invader? Trying to get on?,” one fan tweeted, while another added: “Pretty sure that pitch invader was Gutho… was so excited to just get some time in the paddock
Another noted that the two invaders were on the field longer than the Eels skipper: “Pitch invader got more time than Gutho,” one Twitter post read.
Prior to Origin III, New South Wales coach Brad Fittler admitted that his decision to pick Gutherson was not dictated by any particular tactical plan.
Fittler suggested that the Eels captain had been chosen for his versatility and his ability to cover any position in the rear.
Some fans on social media joked that the Intruders had seen more action than Clint Gutherson
Parramatta’s skipper sat on the bench until the last three minutes of Origin III
Fans on social media suggested that the field invaders had seen more action than Gutherson
“Well, to be honest, I don’t have a plan [for Gutherson],” Fittler told SEN 1170 The Run Home.
“If you pick that last position and we had two whores […] given our luck in the first two games from a point of view of some of our injuries, they were in the outside backs.
“In almost most games we’ve had an injury in the outside backs, so Gutho covers somewhere between five-eighths and fullback, but there’s no plan. [for him].’
An onlooker noted that the intruders had evaded 22 guards to get onto the field
Gutherson was not needed as Cody Walker stole the show and Josh Addo-Carr scored one of the great State of Origin tries that saw New South Wales avoid a whitewash in the series final.
The Blues ran out comfortable 24-10 winners in Sydney on Wednesday night, with Walker dominating the game in his first game back for the Blues since 2020 as debutant Bradman Best scored a double on his debut.
Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow maintained his impressive record of scoring in each of his Origin appearances with an outstanding solo effort, but the Maroons didn’t have enough to complete a first series sweep since 2010.
However, Queensland can console itself with a third series win in four years.
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