Jack Wighton locked down on Queensland Maroons Origin threat

But apart from that the Canberra Raiders star was expecting exactly the same from Queensland Maroons on Sunday night - breathing fire and looking for redemption from Origin I.

Wighton's preparing for exactly the same role as he had for the series opener, which the Blues won 50-6 in Townsville.

He's preparing for any eventuality, whether that's in the halves, outside backs or even somewhere in the forwards, given he'll again wear the No.14 jersey.

The Sydney lockdown sent the NRL scrambling on Saturday, with the SCG now in doubt as a venue for Origin III, although the Blues players had already had increased protocols introduced on Friday night to ensure Origin II went ahead as planned.

That meant a few additional restrictions for Wighton and his teammates - including the banning of media from their final training session.

Wighton felt last year had been the perfect preparation - when they flew in and out of Brisbane on game day.

"Everything's going ahead like normal except no outside spectators will be at the captain's run or anything like that, it will just be us boys," he said.

"A little bit like last year. We've just got to take it as it comes and deal with whatever gets chucked at us.

"As of last night we're locked up and we're only allowed in the motel and captain's run and back until the game.

"[My role is] pretty similar to last game, just preparing for anything, the unexpected and helping the boys prepare as best I can with any role I can do at training.

"That's the joys of the old 14 - you don't know what you're going to quite get, you've just got to be ready."

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As for what the game brings, it's business as usual.

Wighton still expected the Maroons to come out firing after they'd been badly beaten in game one.

Plus there's the Lang Park effect, with the Blues failing to win there since 2017.

"There'll be really firing. It's always tough up here. We haven't got the win for a few years up here and they're going to be a totally different team," Wighton said.

"They're going to come out full of fire and really bring their game.

"We're just trying to focus on us and we'll get us right. That's our key. They're definitely going to come out and try to put the sword to us."

Wighton was unsure why Lang Park was such a tough place for the Blues to win at, having only won 19 of 57 Origins there.

It's been a similarly unhappy hunting ground for the Raiders five-eighth as well - he's only won once in seven visits across his NRL career.

Both Origins he's played there he's lost, including his Blues debut in 2019.

And he's also only won one of five trips as a Raider - that was this year against the Canterbury Bulldogs for Magic Round.

The 28-year-old has lost both games against the Brisbane Broncos, as well as clashes against the Sydney Roosters (Magic Round 2019) and the Melbourne Storm (2020 preliminary final).

"I'm not sure. They must grow a bit with the good support and the backing they have up here in Queensland," Wighton said.

STATE OF ORIGIN II

Sunday: Queensland Maroons v NSW Blues at Lang Park, 7.50pm.