LAURIE DALEY has stepped down as New South Wales coach, with his assistant Matt King set to replace him.
Daley led the Blues to a 2-1 victory over Queensland this year, only his second win in seven series as coach across two spells.
After their 30-12 win in the decider at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium last month, Daley hit out at “hidden agendas”, having received significant criticism in the media during the series.
The 56-year-old, who was part of five Origin wins as a player in the 1990s, was out of contract and has now confirmed his decision not to continue as coach.
Australian media are reporting that former Blues back King, who has been an assistant coach for the past three years alongside working for Sydney Roosters under Trent Robinson, will step up in Daley’s place on a two-year contract.
King, 45, played ten times for the Kangaroos during a career which took him to Melbourne Storm, Warrington Wolves and South Sydney Rabbitohs, and has been endorsed by Daley.
“I’ve always considered it an absolute honour and privilege to be involved with the NSW Blues State of Origin team, whether that was as a player or a coach, and I’ve always been ready to answer the call for my state whenever they needed me,” said Daley.
“We faced plenty of challenges in the 2026 series and I’m proud of the way the players banded together to overcome them and save their best performance for Game Three in Brisbane to secure a memorable series win.
“I thank the fans for their passion and their support, and I can’t think of a better way to move on than with the Shield back where it belongs in NSW.”
Having won just one of five series in his first spell in charge of the Blues between 2013 and 2017 – the 2014 triumph which ended a run of eight successive Queensland victories – Daley was a surprise choice to return last year after Michael Maguire left to join Brisbane Broncos.
They let a 1-0 lead slip in the 2025 series and it looked like there would be a similar story this year when the Maroons won 44-24 in Melbourne to cancel out the Blues’ 22-20 home win in the Sydney opener.
But as underdogs in the decider, an exceptional performance delivered redemption for the coach.
The chief executive of New South Wales Rugby League, David Trodden, said: “He has led arguably two of the greatest Origin series wins of all time as a coach, after ending Queensland’s eight-year winning streak in 2014 and overcoming adversity to steer the Blues home in 2026.
“Those wins transcended football. They lifted and reinvigorated the whole state. He deserves to leave the NSW Origin arena as the hero that he is.”
It remains uncertain whether Billy Slater will remain in charge of Queensland, having been non-committal at the end of this year’s series.
He’s been in charge of the side since 2022, winning three series in five, but is out of contract.