Melbourne Storm and Queensland superstar Cameron Munster has opened up on the harrowing moment he found out his father died.
While preparing for this year’s State of Origin decider, Munster received a phone call from his sister, who delivered the shattering news.
Steven Munster’s sudden death of a heart attack rocked the entire NRL world as Munster left the Maroons camp to be with his family.
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The 30-year-old heroically returned the day before the game before leading his side to an upset win for the ages.
Emotions spilled over in the aftermath as Munster embraced with coach Billy Slater before paying tribute to his dad and family.
Speaking on The Howie Games Podcast, Munster revealed the shock at finding out the devastating news.
“Going into the Sunday, the day before we were flying to Sydney, my sister rang me, maybe 7 in the morning,” Munster said.
“All I remember is my sister just crying on the phone.
“And I’m thinking ... I didn’t even have inklings of my mum or dad ... I’m thinking something’s happened to her husband or one of her kids.
“I was thinking straight away, ‘Far out, who’s got hurt, someone’s in hospital?’ And then I just remember my sister saying, ‘Dad’s died.’ And I’m like, ‘What?’.
“You’re taking the piss like you’re joking, right?
“And then she’s like, ‘No, why would I be joking about this?’ And I’m like, ‘You can’t be serious?’.
“We look back on it now (with) the coroner’s report. He had a heart attack, and probably couldn’t prevent what happened but I guess looking back on it, you always kick yourself and ask yourself ‘is there something I could have done?’
“As the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.
“My dad’s diet wasn’t great. Regardless of his health, he wasn’t going to change for nobody, and that’s something I loved about him.
“If he had a decision or he had something in his head, he was going by it. That’s what made him the person he is.
“It was an interesting one, I was shocked and started crying.’’
Immediately after the devastating conversation with his sister, Munster rang Queensland coach Billy Slater to tell him the news.
It was the last thing Slater, who answered the call by calling Munster a goose, was expecting.
“I told him and he was like, ‘you’re kidding.’ And I’m like, “no,’’ and I was pretty emotional and started crying,” Munster explained.
“He left the cafe, came all the way back to the hotel and came to my room, and he was pretty distraught as well, because he lost his old man in January, he was a great man Rod.
“Unfortunately, he knew exactly what I was going through, but he knew what was best for me and my family.
“He put Origin and footy aside and became a mate at that time instead of a coach.
“And said, ‘mate you need to go back to where you need to go and spend a couple of days there’, he didn’t push me into any decision.
“But I just remember him saying, ‘you go and see your mum and sister and get yourself sorted before you need to make a decision’
“I just said, ‘I’m playing. I don’t care what you say. I know my old man would want me to play. He would have kicked himself if he knew I pulled out the game for him, especially being such a high stakes game’.”
Munster went on to say it ended up being a fairytale for himself, but it was a “tough time” for those few days before State of Origin III.
“But it was a very emotional toll going back to Mackay, where obviously my sister and her partner live in Sarina,” he continued.
“And yeah, it was a tough time for those three nights. And I just remember just sitting there, just going, why now? Why?
“Like, there was just so many things going through my head, but I knew, I just knew I needed to make sure I was mentally prepared and ready to go for that game in Sydney.
He also paid tribute to Slater and the entire rugby league community for the “overwhelming” support he received.
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