The battle to be named Mal Meninga's Australian halfback for the end-of-year World Cup in England will be a dominant storyline in the 2022 NRL season.
Thursday's season opener between Penrith and Manly - spearheaded by Nathan Cleary and Daly Cherry-Evans - shapes as an early audition for the Kangaroos No.7 jersey.
It's the perfect script; young v old, NSW v Queensland, the up-and-comer against the reliable veteran.
Cleary is expected to be right for round one after having off-season shoulder surgery following Penrith's premiership success.
There is little doubt that at the age of just 24 he is one of the game's most influential players, but deposing Cherry-Evans for his first Test cap isn't going to be an easy fight.
The Manly skipper, who played in Australia's last Test in the 2019 loss to Tonga, is aware of the expectation that comes with the Kangaroos' No.7 jumper and the challenge to keep it is one he relishes.
"I enjoy people comparing me and Nath and where we are at," Cherry-Evans told AAP.
"I love watching him play. He's top shelf. We're at different stages of our careers and he's got the world at his feet and I'm savouring every last game.
"There's a World Cup at the end of the year and that's a part of my goals.
"I played for Australia in the early part of my career, didn't play well enough to get a spot and had to earn my way back into the side.
"I don't want to let it up until I've done a bit more."
Cherry-Evans, who made his international debut in 2011, even floated the possibility of the two playing alongside each other.
While the shootout between the two halfbacks looms large across the season, Thursday's game will be the first look at Tom Trbojevic after his Dally M winning year of 2021.
The likes of Melbourne and South Sydney found ways to nullify the Manly fullback in the finals series by making him bring the ball out of his own end.
But Cherry-Evans said Manly had worked on ways to ensure Trbojevic's 2021 wouldn't be a flash in the pan.
"I think Tom will develop his game this year and I feel that when teams start to do something, he's in an environment where he can go the other way," he said.
"I know myself and Kieran (Foran) will take great pride in putting him in the right areas.
"The opposition can limit certain players but when the game opens up the good fullbacks continue to find weaknesses when you switch off."
