Maroons heroes secure historic Origin series win
- FOGS
- Jul 10
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 13
Queensland have lifted in heroic style for captain Cameron Munster to deliver a State of Origin series win for the ages.
The 2-1 series victory, secured with a magnificent 24-12 win in Sydney in the decider, will be spoken of forever in the same glowing terms as the folkloric wins in 1995 and 2020 against all odds.
The leadup was full of sadness when braveheart Munster lost his dear father Steven and left Maroons camp to grieve with his family.
He returned to lead from the front with courage and pure determination. The players, to a man, turned in a performance of the highest quality that they can all be proud of.
As he ran onto Accor Stadium, Munster looked skyward for inspiration.
"I just asked him to use as much energy as he can - he didn't have much energy, he was a big boy - I needed 10 per cent of him," Munster said.
“I love him, and I’ll obviously grieve and deal with what I have to deal with.”
Coach Billy Slater was a tower of strength for Munster when he got the news of his dad’s passing. Initially he wasn’t going to fly to Rockhampton to be with his family because he didn’t want to let the team down. Slater convinced him.
“I rang Bill straight away. When I told him he dropped everything and came to my room and Bill spoke about how he lost his old man in January,” Munster said.
“He gave me the opportunity to go home first. Family’s first. I’ll be forever grateful for that.
Slater was in awe of Munster’s match day performance, which was elite.
“That’s as courageous and brave as I’ve ever seen,” the coach said.
“I lost my dad in January, I know what it’s like, I know what it feels like. Our dads are our heroes.
The Maroons made history to become the first Queensland side to win two matches on the road to claim an Origin series after losing the first at home.
Queensland’s record in deciders is incredible and they now have claimed victory in 10 of the last 12.
In Sydney they played a perfect first half to set up victory with a 20-0 lead at halftime.
“I’ve been proud of this group a number of times over the past four years but I don’t know if I’ve been anymore proud than tonight,” Slater said.
When Slater made Cameron Munster captain he knew what he was doing.
The 30-year-old was man of the match in the 26-24 win in Perth and followed that up in Sydney with a truly inspirational display after such an emotional roller coaster throughout the week.
Slater has now gone into the record books as an elite Maroons coach and has three series wins out of four.
Only four Queensland coaches have notched three series wins in the 45-year history of Origin footy - Mal Meninga (nine), Arthur Beetson (five) and Wayne Bennett (five).
Slater is forensic with his preparation and, along with his fellow selectors, made brave and ultimately telling calls in this series.
For the decider he gave powerhouse centre Gehamat Shibasaki a debut and recalled 33-year-old prop Josh Papalii. Both players were enormous in the win in Sydney.
The decision to elevate Tom Dearden to halfback to replace wonderful Maroons servant Daly Cherry-Evans also proved a winner.
Dearden scored two tries in the decider, defended like a demon and picked up the man of the match award along with the prestigious Wally Lewis Medal as player of the series.
The series of 20-year-old Sydney Roosters centre Robert Toia was also elite. Toia got better in each match, culminating in the best game of his short career in the decider where he outplayed NSW great Latrell Mitchell.
Munster was clearly moved with pride by the response of his entire side.
“I have so much trust in this team and so much love,” he said.
“You look at guys like Reuben Cotter and Kurt Capewell. So many people were bagging our back-rowers in the media saying they’re not back rowers and they miss tackles.
“A couple of times Reuben put his body on the line, same with Kurt.
“We just grow an extra leg when we wear this jersey.”
