Laurie Daley's overall record as NSW coach is underwhelming, but star forward Cameron Murray says the mentor has been "incredible" from his own experience.
Daley has won just one of six completed series as Blues mentor in two stints but overall has eight wins out of 19 State of Origins when he has been head coach.
Ahead of game two of the Origin series at the MCG on Wednesday, Daley was asked what it would mean to him to win given there is a narrative he is not up to coaching at this level.
"Thanks for bringing up that record," Daley said.
"It's not great is it?
"I want what is best for NSW. I want the boys to win. I want to win. I want the fans to win.
"It is very funny. I know you hear it all the time, but you get excited when you win and disappointed when you lose. There is no in between."
Daley will wrap up his second series win as a coach with a win in Melbourne.
As a player he won 13 of 23 matches for the Blues and was a key figure in series wins from 1992-1994 and again in 1996, playing in all 12 matches.
Murray said he didn't read much into the outside noise made about Daley, when asked what he made of the ex-star player's coaching.
"I am across what is happening inside our four walls, how we are prepping and what we are trying to build this year for NSW," he said.
"Laurie touched on it. We all want to make NSW proud and are all doing the best job we can to prep as best we can.
"Laurie is a big part of that. He is our coach. He is our leader and what he has done for the jersey while he played in it and as a coach has been incredible.
"We want to repay all that hard work as a playing group and get the win for him tomorrow night."
The players can certainly do a better job of assisting Daley to improve his record.
They got out of jail to win after trailing 20-0 in game one of this year's series but have failed to fire at the start of their past three matches.
Captain Isaah Yeo said it had nothing to do with the coach.
"It is certainly on us as players. We are the ones out there and it has been spoken about over the last two series with how we have shot ourselves in the foot in different ways," Yeo said.
"You need to discuss it and learn your lessons from it but ultimately you don't want to make too much of a thing about it because you don't want to tighten up as a group.
"It just means there has to be individual accountability and doing your job right."
