If anyone can overcome tragedy on the big stage, it’s Cameron Munster

“There’s no textbook for this sort of stuff”, said Queensland coach Billy Slater on the eve of the State of Origin decider, in reference to the tragic passing of Cameron Munster’s father.

Indeed, there is no manual to follow for Munster, his family or the Maroons as they attempt to process the unfathomable death of Steven Munster at the age of just 58.

That Munster chose to honour him by playing is no shock. There are few players in the history of the game that can compartmentalise the chaos surrounding them quite like Munster. But then again, the Maroons skipper has never had to contend with anything quite like this.

A “monkey clapping cymbals” was how the Storm star once famously described his state of mind on the field. It’s that ability to “goldfish” - to forget what has just transpired and make the next play count - that has made him one of the rugby league’s greatest clutch performers.

The big stage has never scared Munster, nor has expectation. After being named captain for Origin II, following the controversial sacking of skipper and halfback Daly Cherry-Evans, the five-eighth chased the game like only he can. The added responsibility, coupled with the occasion, only provided more motivation. Those close to him feel the tragedy will only spur him on even further.

“Look, there was a fair bit of uncertainty with ‘Munn’ on Sunday morning when I was sitting in his room, but the one thing he was certain about is, he was very certain that he was playing on Wednesday night,” said Slater, who lost his own father this year.

“That’s one thing that he was very firm with. He didn’t have a lot of answers for a lot of other things, but he gave that one to me pretty straight.”

The longest chat I’ve had with Munster was during the 2023 pre-season. It was a heady time for a man once described as the wild child of the NRL; he was still in the process of repairing his reputation following the white-powder scandal just over a year earlier, an incident that resulted in a stint in rehabilitation. And then there was his decision to knock back a mammoth Dolphins deal, a decision that doubly infuriated Wayne Bennett because Munster didn’t deliver the news personally.

Most players would keep their head down, but Munster isn’t most players.

“I’d love to be captain, there’s no doubt about it,” he said when I asked him if he had ambitions to lead the Storm.

Cameron Munster.Credit: Getty Images

“If they think it will elevate my game a bit more by having a bit more responsibility on my shoulders, I’m more than happy to take it.”

Some players, when the blowtorch is applied, run from the fire. Munster runs towards it. Melbourne ultimately appointed Harry Grant as their captain, but Munster has been reinstated into a leadership group that he was once kicked out of.

Now he has the even bigger responsibility of leading his state in an Origin decider in enemy territory.

Another comment Munster made resonated. We can only guess what impact losing a father can have, but he was adamant that becoming one had changed him.

“For sure, you have more responsibility, you need to be a bit more of a role model not only for my family but also the game as well,” Munster said at the time.

“I’ve had some rough edges and still do but … I want to be better not only for myself and the game as well.”

Other footballing figures have faced the agonising choice of whether to play after a family tragedy. Robbie Farah ran out for the Blues in the last days of his mother’s battle with pancreatic cancer in 2012. The Tigers hooker made a record 63 tackles, later saying it was one for every year of mum Sonia’s life. Two years ago, Newcastle mentor Adam O’Brien coached just days after losing his mother to a brain tumour. In May, NRLW star Sarah Togatuki played for the Blues just days after losing her sister.

Just a day before his death, Steven Munster spoke publicly about how proud he and his wife were of their son.

“Both of us are so proud of the way he’s going through his life and now he’s captain of Queensland, it’s just unbelievable,” Steven told the ABC last week.

“He’s got to be proud the way he’s turned his life around and for where he’s come from.”

There is every chance that, even in his grief-stricken state, Munster could win a fourth Origin man-of-the-match award. It won’t matter if he doesn’t. He has already made his father proud.

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