Daley makes right call after rewriting Origin legacy
George Clarke |
After a State of Origin tenure defined by divisive decisions, Laurie Daley took the right one on Monday when he announced that he would not coach NSW in 2027.
Daley, who publicly endorsed assistant coach Matt King as his replacement, stepped down on a high after steering the Blues to a 2-1 series victory in a game three decider in Brisbane last month.
By going out a winner, Daley has in part rewritten his Origin legacy as a coach.
Daley’s accomplishments as a NSW player have never been in question but his coaching credentials have been the source of heavy debate.
After leading NSW to just one win in five series between 2013 and 2017, Daley appeared to be the only credible candidate willing to take the job on when he was named as Michael Maguire’s replacement in the aftermath of a stirring Blues series victory in 2024.
Daley won game one in 2025 but lost the series and was under immense pressure after the Blues conjured a late victory in this year’s series opener before being thrashed 44-24 by Queensland in Melbourne in Origin II.
The NSW coach was hammered over the use of his bench, his selections of players carrying injury and had to face accusations that he had been handed the Blues job because of his friendship with NSWRL chief executive Dave Trodden.
Daley also had to contend with speculation over his health and reporting from Queensland that he struggled to motivate his players.
For the most part, Daley bit his tongue when it was clearly eating away at him and his family.
Which perhaps explains why he celebrated the 30-12 victory at Suncorp Stadium in Origin III with such gusto.
It felt like a pressure valve had been released when Daley used his post-match press conference to call for his critics in the media to “show some balls” over their coverage of his coaching.
He still turned up for work on his regular Sky Sports Radio show the Big Sports Breakfast the day after the game three win, despite celebrating long into the night.
Daley, wary of making a call on his coaching future based on emotion, chose to delay a public decision on the Blues job until Monday when he used his radio program to announce he would not seek a new deal.
Trodden, who phoned in to congratulate Daley, summed up the outgoing coach’s decision best by saying: “There’s one thing that’s common about the great leaders: they never make it about themselves, it’s always about everyone else.”
AAP