'It's a myth': Blues win dispels claims Maroons have greater spirit
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NSW coach Michael Maguire has declared that Wednesday night’s historic series win proves that claims the Maroons have more Origin spirit than the Blues is “a myth”.
The 14-4 win, which was the first time NSW had won an Origin decider in Brisbane since 2005, reinforced Maguire’s reputation as a coach who instils belief in his players after ending title droughts with the Kiwis (2023), Rabbitohs (2014) and Wigan (2010).
However, Maguire said it was the way former Blues players and the people of NSW had gotten behind the team that gave him the most satisfaction about delivering success in his first season as an Origin coach.
An all-time epic encounter
“The thing I’m most proud of is probably the connection I've seen, not just with the playing group and the staff, but with the old boys,” Maguire said.
“Everyone continually says that the people up north have more passion, that they have more this or they have more that, but I've seen that it’s alive and well down here so it's a myth.”
Throughout the series, Maguire ensured his players knew he had their backs and set the tone for them via a verbal battle with Maroons coach Billy Slater.
Maguire’s “glasshouses” comment was in response to claims Joseph Sua’ali’i’s Origin I send off had resulted from a plan to target Reece Walsh, while he stole the mantle of the “people’s team” for NSW after Queensland scaled back media commitments.
He again backed forwards Cameron Murray and Haumole Olakau'atu who face two-to-three match bans for running from the bench to become involved in a melee that spilled over the sideline during the first half of Wednesday night’s gripping decider.
Things are heating up
Olakau'atu, who was wearing a suit as he was a non-playing reserve, was evicted from the field of play, while the Maroons camp suggested Murray should have been sent off rather than sinbinned.
“It's disappointing,” Maguire said of the bans. “I get it, but I also think that the high emotion of when you're playing the State of Origin is enormous.
“Cam was reacting to the sight of seeing one of his own being surrounded by a whole lot of Maroon jerseys. Haumole was doing the same thing.
“I think anyone would do the same when you have got a family and the brotherhood that they have built.
“It was good to see our players show that. In Game Two they showed that, and in Game One they showed that in the effort that they had having to fight with 12 players.
“It's an Origin game, you've got the best players in the world and you've only got 12 players on the field, so that could have gone any which way.
“But our boys held strong and there was probably moments in that game where we could have actually created something quite unbelievable.”
With Queensland scoring just one try during the series against 13 Blues players after Sua’ali’i was sent off in the eighth minute of Origin I, Maguire praised their defensive resolve.
Maguire also revealed how NSW team-mates had kept reassured centre Bradman Best at halftime after a number of errors and he responded by scoring the try that put the Blues ahead for the first time in the 65th minute.
“Bradman comes in off the back of a hamstring injury and then all of a sudden he performs like that,” he said.
Bradman Best Try
“He had a couple of errors to start, but he just kept backing it up and I think that was just encouragement from his players at halftime. They were just saying keep backing yourself and that’s the belief that they have given each other.
“Sometimes those games can sort of turn on you a little bit because you can't score, and the ruck was really slow at times.
"That maybe made it a little hard to try and score but the boys stuck solid to what they spoke about, and it opened up at the back end of the game.
“It's a huge achievement for the players, the whole organisation and NSW.
“It started back probably three or four months ago and I wasn't quite sure which path I was going to take and that many people, from old boys to the current playing they showed me a way that was able to build a group that came together.”
