New South Wales Blues coach Brad Fittler has reportedly confirmed Stephen Crichton and Daniel Tupou will feature in his team for Game 1 of the State of Origin series.
The series opener will be played on Wednesday, June 8 at Accor Stadium in Homebush, with the Blues having plenty of questions to answer.
The biggest questions facing Fittler was how to replace Latrell Mitchell and Tom Trbojevic in the centres. It has been believed that Kotoni Staggs, Stephen Crichton, Matt Burton and Campbell Graham were the four men in the race to be selected.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Crichton has won the race for one of the positions in the three-quarter line, although it's unclear which side of the field he will play on, or who his partner will be.
Fittler also hinted at a few surprises when talking on Channel 9s Wide World of Sports on Sunday morning. It's believed that one of those surprises is Daniel Tupou's selection.
"There will be a couple of surprises," Fittler said.
"There have been some players who have been doing some awesome things on the field.
Tupou has scored eight tries in 11 games so far this year, but more impressively, is averaging 166 metres per game. It's understood he will take Canterbury Bulldogs' winger Josh Addo-Carr's spot, who has underperformed this year since his move away from the Melbourne Storm.
Brian To'o of the Penrith Panthers is the other incumbent winger in the side.
Fittler also touched on Payne Haas, confirming that he will still be picked despite a request for a release from the Brisbane Broncos last week.
"The Payne Haas situation - I think getting to the bottom of that and getting Payne's reaction to what's going on, speaking to his management, speaking to Brisbane.
"He means a lot to us, he is a young kid, things moved really quickly in how this situation came to a head.
"I have spoken to all parties, and everyone is comfortable, especially Payne. He'll put that behind him.
"His shoulder was the biggest problem, but the AC joint is doing well and he'll be able to get through ten days of training."
Fittler will name his team on Sunday evening.
