The Gomeroi man, who was born in Moree but grew up in the inner west suburb of Glebe, said: “There will be tears of joy in her eyes. She’d be a very proud mother, I know she’s looking down on me, and is always with me.

“I’ll always be strong for her and my family. The jersey I play in [on Saturday] will be dedicated to my mum and my culture and my family this week.

“I think about her every day. I think about her every night before I go to sleep. She’s always on my mind. The reason I get up is for my mum. I want to make her proud and keep putting tears of joy in her eyes up above.”

Munro took to Instagram at the time and posted about his mother: “Losing a mother is a pain that cannot be described in words. It is virtually impossible to move on from the memory of losing the woman who sacrificed happiness in her own life so that you could have a better one. A mother’s love is truly irreplaceable.”

Munro said she loved her rugby league and was known for cooking “a very good potato bake”.

The youngster has been training on the left wing outside Jack Wighton at Souths all summer, with Wighton hopeful the same combination will line up for the Indigenous team.

“‘Ty Ty’ is an exceptional young fella, we had a chat on Monday night, and you could hear it in his voice how proud he was – he understands who he is representing and it’s beautiful to see,” Wighton said.

“I love him and have a lot of time for him, and he’s earned that respect through his actions. Hopefully we can have a big year together.”

Munro and Wighton are among five Souths players in the Indigenous side, which also included Tallis Duncan, Shaq Mitchell and Jayden Sullivan.

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