Origin 2020: Cameron Munster cleared to play in Suncorp decider

Queensland’s hopes of winning back the Origin shield have received a huge boost with the news pivot Cameron Munster will take the field.

2020 SOO Round 02 – New South Wales v Queensland, ANZ Stadium, 2020-11-11. Digital image by Grant Trouville � NRL Photos

Queensland’s hopes of stopping a NSW dynasty have received a huge boost with star Maroons pivot Cameron Munster cleared to play in next Wednesday night’s series decider at Suncorp Stadium.

The Courier-Mail can reveal Queensland’s medical team have given Munster a clean bill of health to return to the No. 6 jersey as the Maroons attempt to deny the Blues a third consecutive crown in Origin III.

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Cameron Munster’s head whacks into the ANZ Stadium turf after attempting to defuse a bomb. Picture: Phil Hillyard

There were fears Munster would miss the decider after Queensland’s most important attacking player was concussed in just the second minute of Wednesday night’s 34-10 drubbing against the Blues at ANZ Stadium.

But Queensland coach Wayne Bennett has uttered the words every Maroons rugby league fan desperately wanted to hear, insisting a head knock will not stop Munster wearing the No. 6 jumper made famous by Wally Lewis.

“Munster will definitely play, he is good to go,” said Bennett, whose structures were thrown into chaos when Munster was concussed after being tackled by NSW forward Tyson Frizell in the opening minutes of Origin II.

“He has no history of concussions and he actually recovered pretty quickly.

“The doc said he passed the tests in the sheds, but once you get the wobbles coming off, you can’t go back on the field once you are in that state, so we took every precaution.

“It’s a huge boost to have Cameron back on deck for Game Three.

“He is so important to the way we play, so we need him back.”

Cameron Munster leaves the field after just two minutes of Origin II. Picture: Grant Trouville/NRL Photos

In the absence of Munster, Queensland’s left edge was torn apart, with replacement Ben Hunt missing three tackles in consecutive NSW tries which propelled the Blues to a commanding 18-4 halftime lead.

Conquering NSW in a series remains the final frontier for Storm premiership-winner Munster.

While he made a superb debut in the Origin decider at Suncorp in 2017, firing Queensland to a 22-6 victory, Munster has never featured in a fully-fledged series win for the Maroons.

“I’ve never won a series over three games, so I’m really excited this time and there wouldn’t be anything better than winning this Origin series with the crop of young players we have in our team,” Munster said last week.

“People think we can’t win without the Big Three (retired Queensland legends Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk and Billy Slater).

“I want to be able to say I won an Origin series without those guys, who are three of the best players to ever play in those positions.”

Maroons legend Steve Renouf said Munster’s scrumbase combination with skipper Daly Cherry-Evans will be crucial as NSW look to win their first Suncorp decider since 2005.

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“Losing Munster so early had a huge bearing on the game the other night,” Renouf said.

“Ben Hunt did his best filling in for Munster, but he is not in Munster’s class at five-eighth, he just didn’t have that presence.

“Not having Cam Munster was a massive blow. He has a bit of Cameron Smith about him, he has the ability to control an Origin game and they really missed his presence around the halves.”

Originally published as Origin 2020: Cameron Munster cleared to play in Suncorp decider