Parammatta Eels halfback Mitchell Moses has quickly leapt to the defence of his NSW Blues coach Laurie Daley, taking fire at former NSW players publicly criticising him after two shaky matches in the State of Origin series this year.

The Blues bottled Game 2 in Melbourne, forcing a decider at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, one of the most formidable trips in rugby league.

Daley has faced pressure for some puzzling selections and interchange decisions during the opening two games of the 2026 series, but Moses is uplifting his coach to show his support.

“The sh*t at Loz … I don't understand it to be honest,” Moses said to the Daily Telegraph.

“It's coming from our own people, it's coming from your own people that have worn the jersey before and they should know better.

“We should be getting behind Loz as much as possible and supporting him, not just bashing him up and beating him down.

“I don't want to keep dwelling on it.

“But yeah, just having it from your own people is not good.”

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Moses wore the six jersey for Game 2 in favour of Ethan Strange, who played the five-eighth role in a scintillating Origin debut in the opening match.
 
While Moses has been battling a hamstring injury and came into Game 2 with an injury concern, there is massive pressure growing on Daley to make the right call for Game 3 to strike the best combination.
 

"I don't think you should ever feel comfortable wearing the jersey,” Moses said.

“There's people injured, there's people playing in form, everything like that.

“You win a game, doesn't mean your spot's safe. You know what I mean? So, you should never feel comfortable wearing the jersey and, play it like it's your last.

“If Loz wants to go with me, I'm ready to go.”

Moses was pulled off the field with ten minutes to go in Game 2, raising concerns about his fitness.
 
Despite this, it was a coaching call from Daley and had nothing to do with the troubling hamstring.
 

“I actually felt very good,” Moses said.

“You listen to the coach. He's going to tell me what to do. I mean, I still had more in me. But yeah I understand what they were trying to do and their reason behind it.”

With an elite performance in Game 3 at Suncorp in the 2024 decider, Moses remains the favourite to hold on to his five-eighth jersey, given he has been to Brisbane and stolen back the shield before. 

2024 Men's State of Origin – QLD v NSW: Game 3
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - JULY 17: Mitchell Moses of the Blues makes a break to score a try during game three of the 2024 Men's State of Origin series between Queensland Maroons and New South Wales Blues at Suncorp Stadium on July 17, 2024 in Brisbane, Australia. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

Although the Blues face an uphill battle if Daley were to make drastic changes, with the Maroons expected to select an unchanged roster in their spine for all three games.

Moses will notch up the 250-game mark on Thursday night against South Sydney, his first appearance in the blue and gold for five weeks.

The Rabbitohs will be without Latrell Mitchell, who has a calf complaint and is expected to be sidelined for a month, ruling him out of an S.O.S Blues call-up to save the series.

Daley will name his side for the Origin decider on Monday before facing the Queensland Maroons on July 8.