Dale Finucane hasn't allowed himself to dream of a Holden State of Origin debut.
The Storm lock has been extremely impressive in the early Telstra Premiership rounds and was man-of-the-match in the round three defeat of the North Queensland Cowboys.
He has backed up a consistent 2017 that saw him play 26 games and spend time in the New South Wales Blues camp as a shadow player with a strong start to the still-young 2018 season.
With new Blues coach Brad Fittler looking set to add a fresh approach to his team, Finucane may be one of the beneficiaries.
But he hasn't heard from Fittler - yet.
"No, I haven't heard from anyone New South Wales related," he said.
"It's obviously something I'd love to do, to play State of Origin.
"I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to be in the squad last year, in game three, as the 20th man to cover some injuries.
"Being in that environment was really good and I guess to know the system the team has. Whether that's changed or not under Brad, I'm unsure."
Inside the NRL - Round 3
When asked if he was ready for a sky blue jumper, the humble 26-year-old preferred to leave it up to the selectors to answer.
"If I'm playing good football, it's something that could happen, but that's for those guys to decide," he said.
Finucane will play opposite former NSW skipper Paul Gallen on Friday night at Southern Cross Group Stadium. He is ready for a physical battle.
Adding to Finucane's credentials is the fact he's played in four grand finals and is quickly approaching 150 NRL games.
Last year he extended his Storm contract for four years, repaying the investment Craig Bellamy made after an initially quiet spell with the Canterbury Bulldogs.
"From past experiences when we've played them, they're a really aggressive team, particularly in their forward pack and all across the board actually," he said
"Their outside backs run quite hard and direct as well.
"That's probably the biggest thing I take out of their side - their physicality - and we'll have to do well to match it with them on the weekend."
