When Queensland's State of Origin side is made official on Tuesday night at the now customary gala reveal in Brisbane, Kyle Feldt will be in Townsville contemplating a dream that was so close, yet still about 1300km shy of becoming reality.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
In truth, Feldt's dashed hopes were less about distance than time. If he could wind back the clock, the winger would concentrate that little bit harder on the two high balls he put down in the first half of North Queensland's win against Brisbane.
Make no mistake: The errors cost him his place in the side. Before kick-off, all he needed to do was get through with his body and reputation unscathed. One out of two didn't count.
While teammate Justin O'Neill and Brisbane's Corey Oates will celebrate their impending debut, Feldt will be the hard-luck story of selection night. He had done all of the work, then tripped at the final step, with Dane Gagai becoming the Steve Bradbury of this year's Maroons.
It may seem a harsh call and the Queenslanders rarely rule out prospects on the evidence of one poor game. But this was the game before Origin, this was a high-pressure encounter and it was the wrong time to show jitters under the descending Steeden.
Should he have been picked, he would have been at the centre of questions all week about his nerve, while the Blues would have taken approximately 30 seconds to thump a booming kick his way at ANZ Stadium.
Oates has lived up to the talent he showed early in his NRL career and will give the Maroons a strong runner, a big body and a quality finisher on one wing, while Gagai has a touch of class and played last year, with selectors having few concerns he will rise above Newcastle's poor season.
O'Neill is a safe option in the centres, where he pairs with Greg Inglis outside of the decorated pairing of Johnathan Thurston and Cooper Cronk. With no Billy Slater on the scene, Darius Boyd plays fullback.
Nate Myles will be selected on the basis of his excellent play for Queensland in the past, while Aidan Guerra will pip Gavin Cooper on the bench, where he joins Brisbane's Josh McGuire and Canberra's hard-hitting Josh Papalii.
In his first selection round table, coach Kevin Walters has played a relatively safe hand, ushering in just a handful of changes as the Maroons try to continue their domination of the series.
Queensland Darius Boyd, Dane Gagai, Justin O'Neill, Greg Inglis, Corey Oates, Johnathan Thurston, Cooper Cronk, Matt Scott, Cameron Smith, Nate Myles, Sam Thaiday, Matt Gillett, Corey Parker. Interchange Josh McGuire, Michael Morgan, Josh Papalii, Aidan Guerra.
