[citation needed] During the 1995 season at the commencement of the Super League war, Toovey again played State of Origin for NSW, though the team suffered a 3–0 loss to Queensland who were coached by his former Manly teammate Paul Vautin.

With the non-selection of Super League players, Toovey was recalled to the Australian team for the first time since 1991 in the 3-0 Trans-Tasman series win over New Zealand in 1995.

In the 1996 State of Origin series, Toovey and Johns continued with the now commonplace positional and role interchange they had used successfully in the World Cup.

[3] In 1997, Toovey captained New South Wales to a State of Origin series victory and played a Test match against a Rest of the World side.

At the conclusion of the season, Manly controversially merged with arch rivals North Sydney to form the Northern Eagles as part of the NRL's rationalisation policy.

In the 2012 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season, Toovey's first as an NRL head coach, the club came to within one game of the grand final but lost to Melbourne.

In January 2017, it was announced that Toovey would become the head coach of RFL Championship side Bradford Bulls, taking over from Rohan Smith following the liquidation and re-establishment of the club.