Rabbitohs skipper throws his support behind ‘Try for Jai’

South Sydney captain Cameron Murray has backed calls for a “Try for Jai” initiative to raise awareness of motor neurone disease and to support Rabbitohs teammate Jai Arrow after he was diagnosed with the condition.

The announcement of Arrow’s MND diagnosis, which has resulted in his immediate retirement from the sport, shocked the rugby league community this week. The debilitating disease affects the nerve cells required for movements such as walking, swallowing, talking and breathing.

Former Rabbitohs teammate Tom Burgess – who lost his father to MND – was the first player to float the idea of a themed round to support Arrow. Speaking ahead of a NSW training session on Saturday morning, Murray also backed the concept.

“Of course. We were boycotting [Try July] at the club, not endorsing any betting companies anyway.

“If the NRL wants to do something like that, and the fans enjoy a little bit more personality when a try is scored than they normally see, if we’re all encouraged to do a little bit there, it’s an awesome initiative to get behind MND research and support Jai like that.

“I think it’s a great idea.”

Try July was a promotion that ran for six seasons and was backed by Sportsbet, which donated $5000 to various causes, including the players’ hardship fund, for every try scored during the month. Nearly $2 million was raised. The initiative was shelved due to pushback from the clubs, many which have entered into anti-gambling partnerships or are sponsored by rival wagering providers.

Murray, who returned to the Blues fold after missing the series last season through injury, spoke about the impact Arrow’s diagnosis has had on the club and community.

“I won’t speak too much about Jai, but what I will say is that over the last couple of months he’s shown an incredible amount of strength, it’s really unbelievable what he’s been going through,” Murray said.

“And the strength that he’s shown in the face of such a cruel disease has been amazing.

“He’s definitely left his mark on rugby league for sure, particularly since he got here in 2021 at the club. He’s left his mark on all of us and we’re all better people for knowing Jai.

“We’re all right behind him and it’s really good to see the support that he’s got throughout the wider rugby league community, and even past that. I think it just speaks about his character and the impact that he’s had on everyone that he’s come into contact with.

“There’s no better bloke and we’re all behind him. We all love him, so we’ll be there with him through this fight.

“It’s cruel, life can be pretty cruel sometimes.”

NSW debutant Blayke Brailey also threw his support behind “Jai July”.

“I think that would be a great initiative,” he said. “I think if we can all do our part and help out in some small or big capacity, I would love to get on board with that.

“Hopefully the NRL and the clubs can sort something out because I think that’ll be an amazing initiative for him.”

Brailey said Arrow would have the support of the rugby league community behind him.

“I haven’t had too much to do with him, but just like everyone else, really shocked and saddened by the news,” he said.

“I know Cam, everyone’s getting around him and the Souths staff there. He’s got all our support and no matter if you’re a Souths fan or if you know Jai, you’ll send your love and your prayers to him and hopefully he can get through this tough time.”