He may have missed selection in the mid-year Test against the Kiwis but such was his influence on New South Wales' State of Origin triumph that Eels fullback Jarryd Hayne has been named the Representative Player of the Year.
Handed the Blues fullback jersey for his superb start to the season, if NSW were to ever break the Queensland stranglehold they needed Hayne at the peak of his powers, and he didn't fail to disappoint in Game One at Suncorp Stadium.
He terrorised Johnathan Thurston on the Blues' right edge, sparking the first Blues try for Brett Morris in the 19th minute and then wrestled his way over to give his state a 12-4 buffer seven minutes from half-time.
It laid the platform for a drought-breaking Series win and saw Hayne named joint winner of the Brad Fittler Medal with Ryan Hoffman as the Blues' player of the series.