The Telstra outage has been felt at the worst possible moment for the NRL with the Bunker taken out of action for the State of Origin decider on Wednesday night.
The video review system is based out of the league’s Sydney headquarters.
But officials were left scrambling before kick-off at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane after the Telstra problems severed necessary connections.
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today
“At this stage the Bunker would not be in use,” John Gibbs reported on the ABC.
“They are struggling to rectify and they do say they have a contingency.”
Despite Telstra reporting its issues had been resolved by 4pm, the NRL was unable to solve its problems and reverted to a back-up solution for Origin.
Chris Butler was stood down from his duties in Sydney with Gerard Sutton and Jared Maxwell stepping in as the video officials working out of a television truck outside the ground.
The decider kicked off without a hitch otherwise — though Queensland fans were left shellshocked inside their Suncorp cauldron.
NSW stamped their authority in the first half with Nathan Cleary scoring two tries and Cam Murray adding a third for an 18-0 lead.
The scoreline quickly raised the prospect of Reece Walsh being injected into the game off the bench.
“If Walsh gets on the field, it is when and how and what role does he play?” Cameron Smith asked on Nine.
Walsh missed selection for the series opener and did not play a minute of Origin II after being recalled among the reserves.
But Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow put those interchange questions on hold for a moment at least, hitting back in the 34th minute for the Maroons’ first try of the night.
NSW suffered a blow in the last minutes of the first half when James Tedesco went down following a head clash.
The veteran fullback was taken from the field for a head injury assessment with Category 2 symptoms.
Earlier, Jai Arrow — wearing his Queensland jersey and a cane toad hat — delivered the Origin shield to two young fans in the pre-game ceremony.
The former Maroons star appeared at the game fresh off his secret wedding to partner Berina, while he will turn 31 on Sunday.
The occasion will be marked with a party at the South Sydney Rabbitohs’ home game against Newcastle.
