Queensland Maroons captain Cameron Munster has confirmed he should be fine for the opening game of the 2026 State of Origin series, despite missing training over the weekend.
The five-eighth missed training over the weekend, but spoke to the media on Monday, confirming it was a managed training program rather than anything more sinister.
“I'm just not used to doing back-to-back days. I'm getting a little bit older, so when you get a bit older, you understand your body a little bit more," Munster said in one part of his chat with the media.
“Going out yesterday, I would be pretty sore today, so it's just a little bit of tightness in the body. We just thought as a group that it was probably the best thing for me.
“A lot of people probably think there's a little bit of mind games going on, but no, we just thought it wasn't ideal for me going and not doing yesterday because of the fan day and there was a lot of media around.
“If I had it my way, I would have loved to train. I was headbutting with the physios and the coaches, but they thought I can always train on captain's run and get the body right for Wednesday.
“It would be nice to be out there yesterday, but at the end of the day, I didn't want to feel sore and feel sorry for myself today. So I just made sure I'll be right for Tuesday and Wednesday.”
Ezra Mam, who has been named to the bench, would come into the starting side if Munster can't play, but that appears unlikely.
The Storm star has played through various injury issues over the last two or so seasons, but has been at full fitness - or close enough to - this season, with his form which struggled through the opening two months of the campaign, finally turning a corner in recent weeks.
Game 1 of the Origin series will be played at Homebush on Wednesday evening.
