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Murray: The motivation that drove NSW to Game III triumph
Nicholas Quinlan • July 9th, 2026 3:04 am
Having lifted the shield for the fourth time of his career, Cameron Murray has spoken on the motivating factors that drove NSW to series victory.
Following their 44-24 loss at the MCG in Game II, which saw the series tied at 1-1, many were quick to write off the Blues, with Queensland coming into the decider as the favourites to retain the shield.
But in front of a packed Suncorp Stadium, NSW flipped the script, having run out 30-12 winners with Murray scoring a try seven minutes after coming off the bench.
Speaking after the match, the 28-year-old did note that the underdog status helped motivate the squad to their incredible result.
“I think it added a bit more motivation for us,” Murray told SEN.
“We had a lot of people against us, and we came up here, and we weren't supposed to win.
“We were heavy underdogs, and we took that in our stride and had a back against the wall mentality.
“We trusted our system and our game plan, and we trusted the players that we had on our team.
“It's unbelievable, I'm just so proud of all the boys.”
Throughout the series, Blues coach Laurie Daley had been under fire from the media for his selections and tactics, with some calling for him to lose his job mid-series.
But with NSW’s win on Wednesday night, the Raiders legend had the final laugh as he lifted the shield on enemy territory, with the Rabbitohs captain proud to deliver a performance like that considering the unfair criticism surrounding Daley.
“To be honest, Laurie did a great job of not making it about himself at all,” he added.
“He's a pretty selfless guy. He wanted us to play for ourselves and for our whys and why we play for that blue jersey. He wanted us to play for our state.
“In saying that, it definitely feels good to come out here and put a performance on like that for him.
“There was a lot of chat about him in the media and probably some of it not very fair.
“I think I can probably speak for most of the boys here in saying that we're proud of the performance that we put in.”
Murray’s Rabbitohs next feature this Sunday when they host the Newcastle Knights at Accor Stadium.
SEN League will have live coverage of the match available across our radio network and on the SEN app from 1pm AEST with kick-off taking place 2pm.
