Newcastle High School is celebrating after two of its teachers helped NSW wrap up the Women's State of Origin rugby league series with a tense win in Brisbane on Thursday night.

Olivia Higgins and Yasmin Meakes were part of the NSW Blues squad that secured the series thanks to the 14-10 victory at Suncorp Stadium.

It came off the back of an equally tough opening clash in Game 1 where Meakes was named player of the match in the 11-6 result on home turf in Newcastle.

Higgins helped change the momentum of that match, setting up a try after coming off the bench before being elevated to the starting line-up for Game 2.

Principal Dr Janene Rosser said the school community was firmly behind both women.

"Newcastle's a rugby league town and everyone knows that," she said.

"The impact they have on other young women in sport and the inspiration they provide for female athletes is very significant. They have a big impact on the school."

Higgins is a permanent teacher at Newcastle High School, originally employed as a PE teacher before retraining in special education. She works in the school's support unit, running sport and fitness programs.

It’s an arrangement that provides some flexibility around the compressed NRLW season schedule without disrupting students.

"She's an incredible young woman with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm," Dr Rosser said.

"She loves the school, loves the community, has strong rugby league connections through her family and she's very smart and talented educationally as well."

Meakes, who joined the school on a casual and temporary basis, brings her own remarkable story.

A Newcastle local raised in Cardiff South, she has represented Australia across three different codes: touch football, rugby sevens and rugby league.

She was signed to the Australian Sevens squad for the Tokyo Olympics before COVID intervened and has since become one of the NRLW's most recognisable figures, captaining the Newcastle Knights and winning an NRLW premiership with the Sydney Roosters in 2021.

Off the field, Meakes and Higgins co-founded the Future Fierce Academy, running free rugby league clinics for girls in regional and rural communities across NSW. The academy is built around confidence, mentorship and giving young female athletes visibility of a pathway that simply didn't exist a generation ago.

Dr Rosser said the school's Facebook post wishing both players well ahead of Game 2 drew an enthusiastic response from students, particularly those in the support unit.

"The kids down there are extremely connected and invested in following their careers," she said.

The pair are expected back at the school next week.

For a school committed to identifying and nurturing talent across all domains including the kind of high-potential athletic and leadership qualities both women embody, having two active State of Origin representatives on staff is as good as it gets.