Latest news with #StevenMunster
7NEWS
10-07-2025
- Sport
- 7NEWS
NSW Blues winger Brian To'o pays tribute to Cameron Munster's late father during Origin decider
NSW winger Brian To'o has been lauded for a classy gesture towards opposition captain Cameron Munster during the State of Origin decider on Wednesday night. To'o paid tribute to the Maroons skipper's late father, who died in the leadup to game three, by writing Steven Munster's name on his arm tape before the game. The Penrith star later shared a video of his forearm, taken pre-match, which showed the message among a number of other personal details he carried with him onto Accor Stadium. Steven's name was written and underlined next to a religious cross and a love heart. 'No weapon formed against me. Go time baby. Rest in love Steven Munster,' To'o captioned the video. The classy act didn't go unnoticed from fans, who celebrated To'o's thoughtfulness. 'Brian To'o isn't just my favourite player for his on-field performances, it's stuff like this which is why I love this dude so much,' one Panthers fan said. 'Cameron Munster was his rival last night and he still wrote Cam's dads name on his wrist tape. 'Pure class right here, rest in peace Steven Munster.' Munster's rollercoaster of emotions came bubbling to the surface after a sad and ultimately inspiring week for the Queensland captain. After the death of his dear father Steven in the days before the State of Origin decider in Sydney, Munster led the Maroons to a 24-12 win in what was his finest hour as a footballer. The 29-year-old wiped away tears as he embraced his coach Billy Slater post-match. The bravery and strength of character shown by Munster to play was an inspiration to his coach and also to his teammates who all lifted to a man. Munster was interviewed by his childhood hero Darren Lockyer on Nine after the game and all the feelings of his turbulent week spilled out. 'Look, it's a tough one, like a high of emotions. When someone loses someone, you forget about it sometimes, but then it brings back memories,' Munster said. 'I just want to say thank you to all of the rugby league community, they've been outstanding. 'I've had so much support and text messages from not only rugby league (people). Family is more important than anything, and a lot of people showed that the last couple of days and really got behind me.' Munster has grieved with his family this week and singled them out for being rocks of support. 'Thank you to my mum, my sister, my partner Bianca and the kids for getting behind me this weekend,' Munster said. 'I know it's been a tough time, but that's life. 'I just want to appreciate everyone that's been around me and made this week so special. We'll enjoy tonight and I can't wait to obviously go next year and hopefully see what we can do.' Munster has received great support from his Maroons teammates but also from his Blues opponents, which clearly moved him. 'I'd just like to thank the NSW Blues, Isaah (Yeo), Nathan (Cleary), Laurie Daley and all the coaching staff and all the players,' Munster said at the official presentation. 'I really appreciate some of you reaching out to me during the week. It just shows how good rugby league is. 'Family's bigger than the sport. Thank you for rallying behind me. It doesn't go unnoticed. I'm in awe of all you guys and you'll be back bigger and better next year.' Munster's two performances as captain of the Maroons don't get any better. He was man of the match in the 26-24 win in game two in Perth to keep the series alive and then played a controlled, disciplined and also dangerous role in the decider. His kicking display was as good as any in his 21-game Origin career.
News.com.au
09-07-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
‘Never felt like this': Billy, Munster shares details of shattering Maroons camp moment
Maroons coach Billy Slater has detailed the emotional moment he shared with Cameron Munster immediately after the Maroons skipper learned the tragic news of his father's sudden passing. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer. Slater said Munster's effort to lead the Maroons onto Accor Stadium and help deliver a series win, just three days after the passing of his father Steven, was one of the most 'courageous and brave' things he's seen. The Maroons coach said that Munster immediately committed to playing soon after receiving the devastating phone call. 'I don't like ranking things but I've never felt like this,' Slater said. 'The bloke to my left (Munster), that's as courageous and brave as I've ever seen. 'I lost my dad in January, I know what it's like, I know what it feels like. Our dads are our heroes. 'I don't know how he did it, but within 10 minutes of sitting with him in his room on Sunday morning he looked at me and said 'Bill, I'm playing'. I know his dad would have wanted him to and boy that is one proud dad up there tonight'.' Munster and Slater were captured in an emotional embrace on the field following Queensland's 24-12 win, with Maroons teammates also showing their support in touching scenes. As he didn't want to disrupt the team's preparation, Munster admitted he considered staying in camp, but his coach urged him otherwise. '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. 'I was in camp the whole week. I knew the preparation. It would have been a tough job for Bill to put someone in and understand the way we wanted to play. 'It was an easy decision to me. Queensland is everything to me... It was an easy decision for me. I never would have turned this decision down. 'I had a moment there with Bill and had a moment with him on Sunday. He knows what I'm going through. 'He gave me the opportunity to go home first. Family's first. I'll be forever grateful for that. 'I was leaning towards not (going home) but Bill told me I needed to go home and I'm so grateful that he did. 'It's not ideal preparation wise but the way the team got up for me, I'll be sitting down when I'm 80 years of age remembering 2025.' Munster also credited his teammates, singling out a couple of unsung heroes. '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 where this jersey. 'They talk about the Neville Nobodies in 1995, but no one in the journo world gave us a chance. It'd be interesting to say what you're going to do tomorrow.' For Slater, it's his third series win in four years at the helm. After a hiccup last year and a series opening loss, Slater and the Maroons were feeling the pressure. The way the Maroons were able to scrap and claw back to win this series though is nothing short of impressive. Given everything that went on in the lead up and having their backs against the walls, Slater called the Game III win an 'inspiring performance'. '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,' the Queensland coach said. 'There's been a lot of hurdles to overcome. It's an incredible feeling and I'm sure 5.5 million people are feeling the same way.'
Daily Mail
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Queensland stars halt Origin celebrations to pay a touching tribute to Cameron Munster's dad after emotion victory against New South Wales
Cameron Munster's rollercoaster of emotions came bubbling to the surface after a sad and ultimately inspiring week for the Queensland captain. After the death of his dear father Steven in the days before the State of Origin decider in Sydney, Munster led the Maroons to a 24-12 win in what was his finest hour as a footballer. The 29-year-old wiped away tears as he embraced his coach Billy Slater post-match. The bravery and strength of character shown by Munster to play was an inspiration to his coach and also to his teammates who all lifted to a man. In the changing rooms after the match, the Maroons stars sang and sprayed beer as they celebrated winning bragging rights over their arch rivals New South Wales. But they paused for a brief and heartwarming moment to pay tribute to Munster's father, Steven, with coach Billy Slater leading the tributes. The Maroons players gathered round in a circle, put their arms around their captain and raised their beers in the air in tribute to his father. An emotional Munster covered his face and dropped his head towards the floor, overwhelmed with emotion. After the match, Munster was interviewed by his childhood hero Darren Lockyer on Channel Nine and all the feelings of his turbulent week spilled out. 'Look, it's a tough one, like a high of emotions. When someone loses someone, you forget about it sometimes, but then it brings back memories,' Munster said. 'I just want to say thank you to all of the rugby league community, they've been outstanding. 'I've had so much support and text messages from not only rugby league (people). Family is more important than anything, and a lot of people showed that the last couple of days and really got behind me.' Munster has grieved with his family this week and singled them out for being rocks of support. 'Thank you to my Mum, my sister, my partner Bianca and the kids for getting behind me this weekend,' Munster said. 'I know it's been a tough time, but that's life. 'I just want to appreciate everyone that's been around me and made this week so special. We'll enjoy tonight and I can't wait to obviously go next year and hopefully see what we can do.' Munster has received great support from his Maroons teammates but also from his Blues opponents, which clearly moved him. 'I'd just like to thank the NSW Blues, Isaah (Yeo), Nathan (Cleary), Laurie Daley and all the coaching staff and all the players,' Munster said at the official presentation. 'I really appreciate some of you reaching out to me during the week. It just shows how good rugby league is. 'Family's bigger than the sport. Thank you for rallying behind me. It doesn't go unnoticed. I'm in awe of all you guys and you'll be back bigger and better next year.' Munster's two performances as captain of the Maroons don't get any better. He was man of the match in the 26-24 win in game two in Perth to keep the series alive and then played a controlled, disciplined and also dangerous role in the decider. His kicking display was as good as any in his 21-game Origin career.
ABC News
09-07-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
Amidst grief and sadness, Cameron Munster plays another iconic State of Origin performance after his father's death
Cameron Munster only cracked 20 State of Origin games in Perth three weeks ago, but about a quarter of them have been in the "iconic" category. Think his 2017 decider debut when he replaced Johnathan Thurston and the team didn't miss a beat. There was the 2020 miracle, the blond-haired 2022 stunner, and his man-of-the-match effort in his first outing as captain to level the series. As potentially the best player on the park in every game, Munster always shoulders a heavy load, but nothing like he did in Queensland's 24-12 victory in enemy territory. When he led his state out for just the second time, he found a patch of the Stadium Australia turf to take a moment of solitude amongst all the chaos. Eyes cast skyward, it doesn't take a psychic to know what he was thinking about. Days after the death of his father, Steven, this footy larrikin who always seems to have 10 things running around his mind at once, found a way to refocus on the task at hand when the outside noise was at its loudest. Munster said he was asking his dad for whatever energy he could impart. He didn't score a point or lay on the final pass for any of tries. He didn't break the line and barely bent it back. Never did he slip a pass or make a tackler miss. But, like so many captain's knocks before it, the numbers in this game could not have mattered less. It was littered with moments like storming over to Gehamat Shibasaki to hype the 26-year-old debutant after his composure and hands set up the opening try. Five minutes after half-time, with every Queenslander wary of another comeback by the Blues, Munster was the first man down the ground to hit and stick on NSW fullback Dylan Edwards. There'd be no repeat of Perth. "Playing for Queensland means so much to him," halves partner Tom Dearden told ABC Sport. Munster's captain at Melbourne, Harry Grant, was similarly emotional about his great mate. "So much love and appreciation to Cam for the way he showed up tonight to play and how he handled this," Grant told ABC Sport. "The only way we could repay him was through our actions to give him something to remember through this time. "We played for him tonight." For a man whose NRL career has run the gamut from unbelievable acts at both ends of the spectrum, on and off the field, maybe it's fitting that Munster turned the worst moment of his life to a famous victory. He's played better games and probably will in the future for state, club and country, but nothing will match what he did when he could have so easily taken time away. Instead, after some coaxing from coach Billy Slater, he spent time with his family to sit with sadness and grief, then got back together with his teammates to get on with the job at hand while finding time to keep processing. He found his moment before the game and after it too. With cameras searching for him, he was lost in a crushing cuddle from 12 other maroon jerseys. Every player on the field spent a little extra time embracing him, and the tears flowed when during a lengthy hug with Slater, who lost his father in January. On the stage, he paused towards the end of his victorious captain's speech to take a deep breath and gain his composure and speak directly to mum Debbie and wife Bianca. "It's been a tough time, but yeah, I guess at the end of the day, that's life," he said. "I just want to appreciate everyone that's been around me and make this week so special." His voice cracked and wavered briefly — he'd be inhuman not to — but he promised to enjoy the celebrations. "I love him and I'll grieve and deal with what I have to deal with tomorrow," he said. "I want to soak it up tonight with my family with the team." That family and team got him through the past few days, dozens more will help get him through the next few years, and Munster said, despite all the pain, he will look back on this time and smile. "I'll be sitting there when I'm 80 years of age remembering 2025," he said. Another quiet moment for the kid from Rocky to remember his dad, his "big heart" and the pain that showed Munster how much love he has around him.
Herald Sun
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Herald Sun
State of Origin game three guide: Kick off time, how to watch, Queensland Maroons, NSW Blues team news
Good evening and welcome to our rolling coverage of the State of Origin game three decider. Follow live for all the latest scores, team news, analysis and more. Originally published as State of Origin III: Touching final words from Steven Munster about his son Cameron NRL There are question marks over several NSW players heading into the Origin decider as the Blues take a 'massive' gamble that could blow up. NRL Josh Hannay has been the cornerstone of Queensland coach Billy Slater's support staff in recent seasons and the highly-rated assistant is on the cusp of a full-time NRL head coaching role.
