Much has been spoken about how the New South Wales State of Origin side is in a state of disarray leading into this year’s series.

Due to injuries, suspensions and Jarryd Hayne departing the sport, many of last years incumbents are now unavailable.

This means that they will head into their first defence of the shield in nine years as large underdogs in many peoples eyes, but not in mine.

NSW have enjoyed a huge injection of young stars into first grade over the last few seasons and arguably boast the greatest depth they’ve had in years.

I strongly believe that Queensland are in more trouble with their ageing squad. Here’s a look at each position for NSW and the team that I think can help then win the series again in 2015.

Fullback
With Jarryd Hayne now in California chasing his NFL dream, the NSW coveted number one jersey is up for grabs. I believe it’s a two horse race.

Josh Dugan has arguably been the best fullback in the NRL so far in 2015, and should he recover from his knee injury in time, deserves this spot. He has regularly excelled in representative arenas and will bring some much needed experience to the back three.

Should he not recover in time, Matt Moylan is a more than adequate replacement. Moylan is an extremely talented young player who makes smart decisions on a footy field and is extremely composed when under pressure. He currently leads the NRL in try assists and I believe that when he gets his shot to play Origin football he will be a star. However, I don’t think that shot will come in 2015.

Wings
NSW regular Brett Morris will be unavailable due to injury, he is undoubtedly their first choice winger and will be sorely missed this year.

However, fortunately for the Blues they have many exceptionally talented young men to fill the void and other incumbent, Daniel Tupou, will likely keep his spot. A very good finisher who is second to none in the air, he has found form at the right time and has scored seven tries in 2015.

Tupou’s Roosters team mate Blake Ferguson looked as though he was playing his way back into the team before going down with injury.

Alex Johnston is one contender to fill the right wing role. He has enjoyed a meteoric rise to star status since making his first grade debut during Round 8 of last year. Another very good finisher, Johnston has that something special about him but may miss out after having a quiet performance when making his Test debut for Australia a few weeks ago.

Will Hopoate is another man who may be strongly considered. Hopoate had a superb Origin debut as an 18-year-old and has been selected for Origin squads ever since. He has struggled to find form this year after making the switch to fullback, but if selected, Daley would know he’d be getting a consistent player who would get the job done in both offence and defence.

Wests Tigers veteran Pat Richards has been spoken about as a candidate since his return from the Super League last year. Although he is a very good finisher, his greatest asset may be his ability with the boot.

James McManus played in Game 3 last year and although he did a good job, I don’t see him being selected. Another James might be though.

The incredibly quick pair of James Tedesco and James Roberts are the two fighting it out in my opinion. Tedesco has brought a lot of flair to the Tigers and certainly knows how to find the line, scoring eight tries so far in 2015.

As does Roberts who has dotted down nine times himself while being exceptional for the Titans week in and week out. He plays as the Titans’ centre for but he has also played a lot of football on the wing at both junior and senior levels.

Roberts edges out Tedesco and Johnston. He would be my preference to slot into right wing.

Centres
Daley may be without one of the Morris twins but I’m sure he was very to happy to hear the news of Josh’s recovery in time for game one. I think he and fellow incumbent Michael Jennings should have no trouble retaining their spots.

Josh Morris has had the unenviable task of marking Greg Inglis over the last few years, and has done a very good job of keeping him reasonably quiet.

In sticking with Jennings, Daley would be able to utilise the Roosters’ very potent left side attack. He is super quick off the mark, has great footwork and is also good defensively.

Will Hopoate, Dylan Walker and Jarrod Croker will all be hoping to be next in line should an injury or suspension occur.

Halves
This has been the most talked about position leading up to the Origin Game 1.

Personally, I would have loved to see NSW stick with their incumbents here. Unfortunately for Josh Reynolds, his form has been lacklustre in 2015 and although I believe that he is tailor-made for Origin, he may have done everything he could in the City versus Country clash to play his way out of an Origin jumper.

His Bulldogs halves partner Trent Hodkinson however, has quietly been building as the season rolls on and I think he should keep the number seven jersey. Defensively, Hodkinson is one of the best halfbacks in the NRL and I think that is a very important asset to have in Origin. He is also really calm under pressure, has a top kicking game and was one of the main reasons NSW were able to finally break the drought in 2014.

With Adam Reynolds being out injured, Mitchell Pearce is probably the most deserving to partner Hodkinson. Although a natural halfback, he could play stand off no worries because the roles are very similar in the modern game. He has often been unfairly blamed for the Blues’ lack of success but now that he is a more mature player who is also very good defensively, Pearce has once again come into form at Origin time.

He was near perfect in the Roosters win over the Wests Tigers on Friday night and has now racked up eight try assists for the season, on par with Johnathan Thurston. His Roosters five-eighth team mate James Maloney may consider himself unlucky not to get a re-call.

Like Pearce, Maloney has come into form at just the right time, and after a man of the match performance in Wagga Wagga he is at the forefront of a lot of peoples’ minds. The fact that he is often a liability on defence though means he will likely be left out altogether.

Luke Brooks has been earmarked as a future Origin star but, even by his own recognition, isn’t ready for it yet.

On current form, Raiders five-eighth Blake Austin could be a dark horse to fill the role of stand off or 18th man. He has been exceptional in a resurgent Canberra outfit which currently sits in fifth spot on the ladder. His performance in the City versus Country game, where he scored three tries while playing halfback, has surely put him on Daley’s radar.

Another dark horse to fill the standoff role is Jamie Soward, who on the back of last years performances alone should be considered. He lead the Panthers to within one game of the grand final but unfortunately an injury ravaged start to the year has meant he has been unable to build on that form. Now that he has returned, Soward has a few weeks to push his case.

Hooker
Not a long write up here. Robbie Farah is easily the top rake that NSW have to choose from. Mitch Rein, Michael Ennis and Nathan Peats are all good players, but they aren’t in Farah’s league. He will captain the side should Gallen not be fit.

Props
Paul Gallen will be the first player picked by Laurie Daley, although he may not play. The inspirational captain of the boys in blue will be severely missed should he not recover from his hip injury in time.

Undeniably tough with a work rate that is matched by no one, Gallen is extremely passionate about his state and would love nothing more than to retain the shield. That is why he has publicly stated that he will not play unless he is 100 per cent. Daley has said that Gallen will have until the eleventh hour to prove his match fitness.

Aaron Woods will retain his starting role in the team. He is the NRL’s leading forward thus far in 2015 when it comes to run metres and was extremely dominant during last year’s series. Often bending the Maroon wall while racking up large metres with the ball, he also worked hard on defence and often won the wrestle.

Another regular who has found his form at just the right time is the towering James Tamou. He has been good for the Cowboys who have now won six in a row and he was re-called to the Australian Anzac Test team.

After a poor 2014 campaign Andrew Fifita has also suddenly played his way back into contention. The 2013 Dally M ‘Prop Of The Year’ is an extremely talented big man who has produced a few barnstorming performances for Cronulla and the City side.

The hulking David Klemmer is another who has pushed his case this year. Many have had a big wrap on Klemmer since even before he made his first grade debut and last year we began to see why.

He was a big part of a dominant Bulldogs pack and by the end of the year he had played his way into the Australian Test side, making his national team debut in the Four Nations. Klemmers’ aggressive style of play would be well suited to Origin and, depending on what coach Daley wants as the makeup of his bench, and whether Gallen is healthy by then, he could very well find himself coming on as an impact player.

Canterbury team mate Aiden Tolman could be an outside chance after being spoken about as a candidate for years, but I think he misses out yet again.

Finally, Kade Snowdon has been exceptional for Newcastle this year and will be hopeful of a recall to the Blues’ side. Unfortunately for him though, he was ineffective during his last stint in the Origin arena and will find it difficult to lift himself up the pecking order when considering his competition for a spot.

Back Rower
In what is quite possibly the biggest loss to the Blues’ 2015 campaign, Greg Bird was made unavailable for the whole series after copping an eight-week suspension. Fortunately for NSW they have always enjoyed great depth when it comes to their back row stocks, and this year will be no different.

Incumbents Beau Scott and Ryan Hoffman should be kept in the starting line-up.

Scott has been one of the NRL’s best forwards so far this year and Hoffman has continued to play at a consistently high level since his move across the ditch.

Luke Lewis is another who has continued his high level of play throughout 2015 and is almost a certainty for a bench spot. He brought enormous impact off the bench in 2014 and considering his ability to play numerous positions on a footy pitch, he is the perfect number 14.

Anthony Watmough has been a big part of NSW teams for years. A constant performer for the Blues, “Choc” looked set to lose his role in the team to some of the states’ younger talented second rowers, but he may have been thrown a lifeline with the absence of Greg Bird.

One of those younger players who should add to his State of Origin caps is Boyd Cordner. Another member of the Sydney Roosters’ lethal left side, Cordner has been spoken about as a potential future captain of his club and state.

Bulldogs pair Tony Williams and Josh Jackson were both members of last year’s squad and both men will be in the mix for selection.

Jackson in particular is a talented young player who could find himself going one better than the 18th man role he had in 2014.

Another club boasting multiple back rowers who may get the call up are the in-form St George-Illawarra Dragons.

Trent Merrin has been simply stunning for the Dragons since playing his way into the starting line-up, and young guns Tyson Frizell and Joel Thompson have also played a big part of their recent success and wouldn’t be out of place in a Blues’ jersey.

If Daley’s looking for a hard working consistent player to fill the vacant number 13 jumper then he could do worse than Canberra Raiders workhorse Shaun Fensom. Often spoken about as being extremely unlucky to find himself out of representative sides, he finally got his shot at City versus Country this year.

The multiple time winner of the Raiders’ player of the year award may not add as much on attack as some others, but he would bring that gritty, hardworking mindset to the defence that the Blues have built their teams around in the past. If selected, I think the current Origin tackling records would be in jeopardy of falling.

My team for Origin Game 1:
1.Josh Dugan (St George-Illawarra Dragons)
2.James Roberts (Gold Coast Titans)
3.Josh Morris (Canterbury Bulldogs)
4.Michael Jennings (Sydney Roosters)
5.Daniel Tupou (Sydney Roosters)
6.Mitchell Pearce (Sydney Roosters)
7.Trent Hodkinson (Canterbury Bulldogs)
8.Aaron Woods (Wests Tigers)
9.Robbie Farah (Wests Tigers)
10.Paul Gallen (Cronulla Sharks)
11.Beau Scott (Newcastle Knights)
12.Ryan Hoffman (New Zealand Warriors)
13.Trent Merrin (St George-Illawarra Dragons)
14.Luke Lewis (Cronulla Sharks)
15.Andrew Fifita (Cronulla Sharks)
16.Boyd Cordner (Sydney Roosters)
17.Josh Jackson (Canterbury Bulldogs) or Anthony Watmough(Parramatta Eels)

18th Man- David Klemmer (Canterbury Bulldogs, comes in if Gallen is ruled out)
19th Man- Matt Moylan (Penrith Panthers, comes in if Dugan is ruled out)
20th man- Blake Austin (Canberra Raiders, he deserves a spot in the squad. That way he would be ready to go in Game 2 should the Pearce/Hodkinson partnership fail to fire and could be an option to bring in as a utility)