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PRICHARD: Trent Merrin is here to stay as a Test player

26th April, 2015
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Trent Merrin has plenty of agro, but also plenty of skill. And how he snared Sally Fitzgibbons we'll never know. (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Renee Mckay)
Expert
26th April, 2015
20
1113 Reads

Trent Merrin on the bench is the selection that really excites me in the Australian team for the Test against New Zealand on Friday.

He’ll go out and kill it at Test level just like he has done all season for St George Illawarra in the NRL.

On one hand it seems strange to think that Merrin has already played 10 State of Origin games for NSW but it is only now that he will make his Test debut. But, on the other hand, his game has taken a big leap forward this season.

It is a shame for the Dragons that they will lose him to Penrith next season, but at least after turning their awful start to this season around they have the potential to achieve something significant before he goes.

Merrin was in fine form again when the Dragons beat Sydney Roosters on Anzac Day.

In the past, his weight has fluctuated and at times he couldn’t be as effective as he should have been, but he looks the fittest he has ever been this season.

He has gone from coming off the bench to becoming a regular starter and is playing big minutes and making big metres.

Combine that with his ability to either power his way through tackles or at least draw multiple defenders to himself, making that offload of his even more dangerous because of the possibility of holes opening up in the defence nearby, and you’ve got high quality.

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Merrin is monstering the opposition on a weekly basis.

Against the Roosters, he played for 64 minutes and ran for 168 metres. That was way more metres than any other forward from either side made on the day.

The only other players on the field who got near him were the rival fullbacks – his teammate, Josh Dugan, and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck – who ran for 143 and 154 metres respectively.

Players are often selected on the bench because of their ability to make an impact and perhaps change the course of the game with a big play.

You’ve obviously got to have your workers on the bench as well, but you need someone with the ability to have an influence on the outcome if they are available.

Merrin was capable of doing that from the bench, but the beauty of his game at the level it has gone to now is that he can be just as influential from the start of a match, when no-one is tired and the field just seems as if it is more crowded.

Merrin is 25. It might still be a year or two before he enters the best years of his football life. He is going to be one hell of a footballer when he reaches his peak, considering how well he is already playing.

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Against the Kiwis, he will show that it won’t be long before he is a starter in the Australian side.

There is no shortage of veterans in the Australian forward pack. They will begin to disappear from the team soon.

Merrin’s selection is clearly part of the regeneration plan and the great thing about his inclusion is that the selectors and coach Tim Sheens wouldn’t have had to convince themselves about picking him.

He’s got a representative pedigree from Origin and his form is outstanding. They would have chosen him with confidence.

That said, looking at the Australian and New Zealand sides and comparing them to the teams that represented the two countries in last year’s Four Nations tournament, when the Kiwis won both clashes, including the final, we’ve got a genuine contest on our hands again.

The big plus for Australia is the return of five-eighth Johnathan Thurston, after he missed the Four Nations through injury.

Australia has a great record in the early-season Test and is playing at home, in Brisbane, so it is understandably favourite, but New Zealand is quite capable of winning.

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