Munster ready to shine as 16th Maroons captain
- FOGS
- Jun 13
- 3 min read
Cameron Munster has vowed to do the legacy of the great Queensland leaders of the past proud after being named 16th captain of the Maroons.
The 30-year-old Storm and Maroons five-eighth replaces Daly Cherry-Evans who led the side 19 times in a glittering 26-game Origin career.
Munster and the Maroons go to Perth where they will aim to square the series.
“I'm pretty emotional,” Munster said.
“I've developed into a leadership role over the last three or four years. I have grown up a bit.
“I have a lot of leaders around me at the Storm and there are a lot of leaders in this team as well. I'm very excited to lead this team out. It's terrible circumstances with Chez. I am close mates with him, but unfortunately someone had to take the role and I'm pretty excited to lead these boys.”
Munster will receive the FOGS Dick ‘Tosser’ Turner Medal for his 20th Origin game when he plays in Perth. He made his debut in a 22-6 win in the 2017 decider and hasn’t looked back.
“For me playing my first game in the side in Brisbane, we had a lot of great blokes that would probably go down as Immortals so I was pretty much carried in that game,” he said.
“It's a bit of a turning circle and hopefully I can go out there and lead like the boys that have led before me.
“It's such a great opportunity to be captain, being the 16th one. When you look at the greats of the game, to be able to be captain of Queensland … I still pinch myself. When Billy (Slater) told me I had a little tear and it still gives me goosebumps.”
Munster’s favourite Maroons captain growing up was the great Darren Lockyer who also wore the No.6 jersey with distinction.
As he started to play for Melbourne and Queensland however it was to 42-game Maroons hero Cameron Smith he looked to as the most inspirational and best skipper in the Origin arena.
“I couldn't go past Cameron Smith. He led in all the right directions,” Munster said.
“To be able to captain a team for (seven series and 21 times) it's pretty special.
“Everyone talks about X-Factor. He didn't have the X-Factor but he had the capacity to be able to break teams down with his mind and his smarts and you don't really get those blokes in rugby league anymore.”
Munster said he would lead the side by his actions, like Cherry-Evans did before him.
“He’s obviously been a great captain for the state for a long time,” he said.
“I know it's disappointing for him and his family. He hasn't got the opportunity to right the wrongs from game one but I do and hopefully I can go out there and make him proud and make the state proud as the captain.”
Munster’s career has had several rocky moments off the field but he has always owned his mistakes and tried to learn from them. A self-confessed larrikin he has endeared himself to the Queensland public for his honesty, knockabout personality and his magnificent performances, including when he was Wally Lewis Medal winner under Wayne Bennett in 2020.
“I have made some poor choices off-field. Obviously the consequences didn't really matter to me but my kids and my wife probably helped me turn the corner and I've grown a little bit more,” he said.
“At the same time we all have a little child inside us. It just shows people can change. Everyone makes mistakes but there's a lot of learnings in it."
There is a feeling in the Maroons hierarchy that being made skipper will bring the best out of Munster. He relishes a challenge and none is greater than leading Queensland.“This is the first ever time I've had the captaincy in such a big team,” he said.
“I've been able to be the captain of the Storm every now and then but that was as an interim. I've actually got the opportunity to be the captain for a while now.
“I've just got to play good footy and win the series. If I can do that I'll hopefully keep the captaincy for a while.”
