It was the official curtain raiser for the main game between the Prime Minister’s Kangaroos and Papua New Guinea.

Murray played a significant role in the match against the PNG national under 16 schoolboy side as he sets his sights on a career in the sport.

He set up two tries in his sides 16-12 victory, also captaining the team.

At 15 years old, the young five-eighth was the only player from the Mid North Coast to gain selection and the first non-16-year-old to captain the side.

The Wauchope Blues player, who attends Camden Haven High School, said he was surprised to get the call up and was grateful for the opportunity.

“It was a real eye opener over there. It was a great experience,” he said.

“The people of Papua New Guinea are mad about their footy. There were 15,000 fans watching our match.”

Their opponents were described as strong, smart and well drilled.

“We just scraped home by scoring in the dying seconds to win,” Murray said.

“The main thing I got out of the match was to be able to take it up another level and play harder footy. It was so tough, especially in the heat.”

The Kangaroos team was comprised of National Rugby League players, including current Australian, NSW and Queensland State of Origin players.

Murray and his team mates had their match jerseys presented to them by the likes of Greg Inglis, Aaron Woods, Josh Dugan and David Klemmer.

“Josh Jackson presented me with my jersey and I was talking to Boyd Cordner for a bit. He is from Old Bar, so we spoke about Group 3 rugby league and his career,” he said.

A Newcastle Knights junior, Murray will likely move on to another club in 2017 and has now set his focus to next year. 

“I’d love to play in the NRL one day but I know that is a long way away and a lot of hard work,” he said.

“I’m going to have a rest for a bit now, to heal some injuries, and then I’ll get back into it in 2017.”