Nearly a decade after he entered the National Rugby League, Cameron Murray has emerged as the public face of a sweeping transformation reshaping Australian rugby league’s most iconic competition, State of Origin. Once known as a proving ground for oversized power athletes, where 34 massive players from New South Wales and Queensland would trade brutal hits across 80 minutes of nonstop physical play, the elite representative series is now seeing a clear evolution: while team benches have grown in size, the average build of starting forwards has shrunk, with speed and endurance now prioritized over raw bulk.
When Murray made his NRL debut in 2017, he lined up alongside the sport’s signature giants: the 100+ kilogram Burgess brothers and other heavy-boned forwards who dominated the era. Just 20 years earlier, the 2006 State of Origin series featured a roster of legendary heavyweights including Steve Price, Willie Mason, Petero Civoniceva and Brent Kite, all tipping the scales well above Murray’s current listed weight of 96 kilograms. Today, that 96kg frame fits perfectly into the new-look game shaped by rule changes designed to speed up rucks and open up play.
Looking back on his career, Murray recalled early pressure to bulk up to match the sport’s old guard. “When I was coming in, it was the era of the Burgess boys, Ben Te’o, John Sutton and Dave Taylor — all big fellas,” Murray said. “In your mind, you’re like ‘I’ve got to put size on. I’ve got to make sure that I’m as big as these guys’. But as luck would have it, I came in at the right time. The fatigue and the speed of the game started going up, and it probably suited me a little better.”
Murray credits incremental rule tweaks over the past decade with shifting the sport’s trajectory toward a faster style of play that caters to smaller, more agile forwards. “Some little tweaks in the rules over the years and then the way that the NRL are wanting the game to be played now, they kind of catered that to suit the rules,” he explained. “It’s the way that they want the game to go based on the speed of the game and bringing back the smaller guys. I think that’s suited me well, so I’m not complaining.”
The impact of Murray’s unique skill set has not gone unnoticed among teammates and analysts. Former rugby league star Braith Anasta is among those calling for Murray to take the starting lock position for the NSW Blues, pushing current captain and long-time standout lock Isaah Yeo to shift to prop or move to the interchange bench. That arrangement already proved successful during the 2024 series, when Murray delivered a dominant performance wearing the number 13 jersey in games two and three.
Data from Fox Sports Lab underscores how transformative Murray’s presence is for the Blues: the team holds an undefeated 3-0 record when Murray starts at lock. Across 16 total Origin appearances for NSW, the Blues have outscored opponents by 174 points when Murray is on the field, while posting a negative 48-point differential when he sits on the bench. That gap was on full display in 2024’s game one, where Queensland jumped out to an 18-0 lead before Murray entered the game off the bench.
Even Yeo, who has been the Blues’ starting lock for six years, openly praised Murray’s game-changing ability. “He’s been outstanding for a long time, and we’ve definitely missed him in the Origin arena when he had the achilles (injury) last year and when he had a concussion in another game,” Yeo said. “He’s just one of those players who makes every team he’s in better, whether that’s at lock, coming off the bench or playing in the back row. He’s the ultimate professional. I thought what he and Victor Radley brought into the game off the bench was really important. They brought a point of difference for us.”
NSW halfback Nathan Cleary, who plays alongside Yeo weekly at club level and teams up with Murray annually for Origin, highlighted the unique dynamic the two forwards create. “The world’s best playmaker loves working with two of the most effective link men in rugby league, with Murray providing a point of difference that Yeo can’t match. He just adds a different type of leg speed,” Cleary said. “I’ve seen Cam play in the centres before, and that speaks volumes to what he brings with his leg speed. He’s got great ball-playing ability as well, so I think the mix of him and ‘Yowie’ is so dynamic. It’s a pleasure to play alongside those two guys.”
For Murray himself, the debate over whether he deserves a starting spot is irrelevant. His only goal is helping the Blues claim the State of Origin shield after an injury forced him to miss the entire 2023 series. “When I play Origin, I just try to be myself out there. I try to go out and play to my strengths and do what I know needs to be done to get the job done in Origin,” he said. “Origin’s all about effort and going out and doing your best for your teammate, and so that’s what I try to do. If I’m coming off the bench, then I try to bring energy. If I start, I try to start with a level head and I just go out there and try to be the best version of myself and play as best I can in a Blues jersey.”