With Mal Meninga's 22-man Kangaroos World Cup squad now finalised and the tournament kick-off just days away, it's fair to say that a couple of admissions have surprised fans.
It is a bizarre situation in which even amid injuries, defections and pulls outs, both the Dally M player of the year and the Clive Churchill medal winner have not been included in Meninga's main roster.
Is this a sign of questionable selection on the part of the Australian coach? Or is it an indicator of the depth the Kangaroos possess?
To test that depth I have put together an Australian 'B team' made up of players not currently participating in the World Cup.
My eligibility rules are simple: No one who is currently injured or has withdrawn due to injury. And no one who has already pledged their services to another nation (eg. Alex Johnston).
Fullback - Dylan Edwards
One of the more obvious picks for the side coming off his Clive Churchill medal-winning Grand Final performance.
What Edwards lacks in flash ball playing or blistering pace he makes up for in sheer work ethic and consistency.
Leading the NRL by a wide margin in total runs (546), run metres (5,578) and kick return metres (2,278).
Wing - Selwyn Cobbo
The young Brisbane winger has already made his mark on the representative scene appearing in all three games for Billy Slater's Queensland Maroons this year.
Meninga clearly sees potential in Cobbo having selected him in the Prime Minister's XIII, where Cobbo grabbed two tries.
Centre - Jake Averillo
Averillo finds his way into the first centre spot, despite being better served as a fullback at club level.
Averillo got his first taste of an Australian jersey in the Prime Minister's XIII and came away with a try in the 33rd minute.
Centre - Zac Lomax
While it has been an undeniably average year for the Dragons, Lomax has always drawn the attention of representative sides.
Having already been selected as part of the Junior Kangaroos in both 2018 and 2019 as well as gaining experience as part of Brad Fittler's NSW origin squad in 2020, it may just be a matter of before Lomax gets a shot.
Another member of the Prime Minister's XIII, Lomax claimed 20 of Australia's 64 points, scoring 1 try and kicking 8 from 12.
Wing - Dane Gagai
Regardless of club form, Gagai has always impressed at the representative level.
'Gags' has the experience at World Cup level, playing on the wing in Australia's triumphant campaign back in 2017.
Additionally, in that same year, he claimed the Wally Lewis medal for Queensland from the outside backs.
Five Eighth - Cody Walker
This is perhaps a contentious choice given the year that Cowboys half Tom Dearden has had, or even the possibility of throwing Sam Walker a start at six.
For my criteria, Luke Keary is out as he has committed to Ireland in this year's World Cup.
All that said Cody Walker remains a problematic attacking 6 who ended the season third in try assists (21) and line-break assists (21).
Halfback - Nicho Hynes
Another shoe-in for the side having been relegated to Meninga's reserves.
The 2022 Dally M winner has had a phenomenal year leading the Sharks to second on the premiership table.
His record-breaking points tally at the Dally M (38) is reflected by his other stats this year including most field goals (4), most linebreak assists (29), equal third on try assists (21) and fourth on total points (194).
Plus there is the mouth-watering combination of Hynes with Walker in the halves.
Prop - Jai Arrow
A reliable Origin forward, Arrow has already donned the Maroon's jersey on 11 occasions since debuting in that arena in 2018.
However, he is yet to claim that elusive green and gold jumper.
Arrow ranked among the top twenty players for tackles this season with 836 at an efficiency of 94%.
His ability to drive forward in the tackle is an underrated asset as well, as he pulled up 1,349 post-contact metres in 2022.
Hooker - Reece Robson
Most certainly the hardest position to pick on the whole list thanks to the form of Reed Mahoney.
Both rakes lead the competition for tackles made, with Robson on 1101 and Mahoney at 1207.
Statistically, both players stand about even in almost all regards bar running metres, with Robson claiming 1964 total out of dummy half to Mahoney's 881.
There is also the matter of Damien Cook, who is on standby for Meninga's squad and was the last to wear the 9 for the Kangaroos.
Prop - Jordan McLean
Along with Gagai, McLean is the second member of this team to have been present when Australia last lifted the World Cup.
The 31-year-old New South Welshman's career stalled somewhat since joining the Cowboys in 2018.
However, he has had a resurgent year in 2022 with his form at club land earning him a starting spot for the Blues in this year's Origin decider.
In the end, it was not meant to be with McLean succumbing to a hamstring injury before the match, but it does perhaps illustrate that 'Macca' has some representative football left in him.
Second Row - Hudson Young
One of the two-second rowers on this list that Meninga had shortlisted for the squad going into the finals series.
The back end of Young's season certainly turned a lot of heads with his form on both sides of the football helping to propel the Raiders into the top eight.
Second Row - Shaun Lane
Another finalist unlucky to not make the cut for Meninga's World Cup squad.
Standing at 6 foot 6 and running for near 3400 metres this year, the Lane train kept chugging all the way to the Grand Final.
However, perhaps it was the Eels' failure to break the 36-year drought that cost Lane his green and gold jumper, as Penrith's Liam Martin enters the squad instead.
Lock - Ryan Matterson
Claiming Australia's 13 jumpers is an uphill battle for any lock forward going at the moment with the likes of Cameron Murray, Isaah Yeo and Jake Trbojevic available for selection.
And while 'Matto' can also play on an edge off the bench he has made the cut at 13 for my 'B team'.
Matterson is ranked second in the competition for offloads (48) and his ability to unlock second-phase play may be devastating in combination with the dummy half running of Reece Robson.
Interchange - AJ Brimson
Brimson's versatility earns him his spot on the 'B team', his skillset allowing him to cover almost any position in the spine or outside backs if needed.
While we haven't seen much of him in the representative arena, he did make his debut for Queensland in 2020, scoring a try in the series opener.
Interchange - Jacob Saifiti
Another player plucked from the Origin arena, Saifiti's impact off the bench for NSW in the decider this year has earned him a spot on the interchange.
His twin brother, Daniel Saifiti stood down from representing in the World Cup this year back in July and Jacob to remains uncommitted to any nation in this year's tournament.
Interchange - Cameron McInnes
Honestly, people sleep on McInnes at times - he is one of the real effort players of the competition.
Back in 2018 when Brad Fittler was putting together his NSW Origin outfit, one of the major questions was do you go with Damian Cook or McInnes at 9?
Obviously, McInnes missed out and as such does not have much of a representative resume to boast of outside of 1 City vs Country match.
But in this side, he provides good cover for the forwards off the bench and holds a staggering tackle efficiency of 96.7% in 2022.
Interchange - Tom Gilbert
Another edge forward coming off the back of a strong season, and while his efforts at the Cowboys were somewhat outshined by the season of Jeremiah Nanai, the Dolphins bound Gilbert was still good enough to earn himself a Maroons callup for the Origin decider.
Gilbert proved he had what it takes at the representative level, playing near 80 minutes in an intense NSW versus Queensland encounter.
