KEY POINTS:
1. Billy Slater
(Storm) Billy the Kid would have been overall Dally M Player of the Year had it not been for a few uppercuts he delivered to Dragons winger-fullback Jason Nightingale.
He was docked three points and lost out to Matt Orford by two. He missed
out on being named the 2003 Dally M Rookie of the Year when the awards were cancelled by the NRL due to threats of a boycott by the Players Association.
It's a shame Slater hasn't always won the accolades he has deserved because he is a fabulous player. He's exciting to watch, is not afraid to try the unexpected and has a brilliant try-scoring record, with 83 tries in 127 NRL games (his 13 this season rank him in the NRL's top 10).
The 25-year-old should also have played more than his one test and eight State of Origin games but some believe he lacks the consistency and reliability needed to play at the highest level.
Honorable mention to Manly's Brett Stewart.
2. Colin Best (Raiders)
The rangy winger-centre has scored some wonderful tries this season, including the four he got against the Bulldogs earlier this year. He's quick, very quick, elusive and a very good finisher. But he wasn't always held in such high esteem after a steady but unspectacular career with the Sharks and Dragons before the winds took him to Canberra.
Best has also played a number of games at centre this year and lined up there last night but it's on the wing he gets the nod here.
His Raiders career is over as soon as they are knocked out of the playoffs, having signed with the Rabbitohs for next season.
Just beats out a host of others, like Denan Kemp, Jason Nightingale, Josh Morris and Shaun Kenny-Dowall.
3. Israel Folau
(Storm) Folau has played at centre all season but it could have been just as easy to pick him on the wing to allow Mark Gasnier to make the side.
Folau hasn't been as prolific in the try-scoring stakes as he was in his debut season last year but there is no one else who is as good in the air. He has the hops, as American basketballers might say, and makes a difficult art look easy. It's hard to believe he's still only 19.
He's already won an NRL title and played both test and Origin football and it's why he signed a $2 million, four-year deal to join the Broncos from next season.
4. Greg Inglis
(Storm) I know, I know. He hasn't played at centre all season but this is my team and I want Terry Campese at five-eighth, meaning a spot needs to be found for Inglis.
He's good enough to play anywhere along the backline and spent most of 2006 at centre.
The 21-year-old is now the biggest star in the game, after Sonny Bill Williams' dash for cash in France.
Last week the NRL and Storm trumpeted the fact they had kept their man after he had made some alarming noises about converting to rugby and some even more alarming ones about joining up with Anthony Mundine and manager Khoder Nasser.
5. Manu Vatuvei
(Warriors) Something of a home-town selection here, especially as he missed 12 games of the season through injury, but it's hard to find a more devastating winger in the game.
Vatuvei has scored 14 tries this season in 14 games, which has him sixth in the overall standings, and he goes into today's match with the Storm having dotted down five times in two matches.
He is dangerous in the air and almost unstoppable close to the line, as he showed with his simple palming off of 110kg Eels winger Tony Williams last weekend. There's a good reason why he is known as 'The Beast'.
The 22-year-old has undoubtedly had issues with his hands over his career and they can still let him down - like they did in the second game of the season against the Eels - but they have improved markedly to the point teams no longer pinpoint his wing in the hope of the big man making a mistake.
6. Terry Campese
(Raiders) Campese has never been the most fashionable or decorated player. Earlier this year, the Raiders actually withdrew a contract offer for the five-eighth so they could pursue Trent Barrett. They might now be thankful they missed out on the returning former Kangaroo.
Campese has been a principal reason for Canberra's late-season form. Many expected the Raiders to fall away from playoffs contention as the injuries at the club mounted and errant halfback Todd Carney was shown the door. But Campese has stepped up and shown his class.
The nephew of Australian rugby great David Campese seems to be able to break the line with ease and he scored 36 points recently (four tries, 10 conversions) in a 74-12 hiding of the Panthers. He would have equalled Mal Meninga's record of 38 points had he not offered a simple conversion to team-mate Marc Herbert.
Honorable mention to Darren Lockyer.
7. Matt Orford
(Sea Eagles) The Dally M Player of the Year has had his critics over the years and even this award was showered with an element of controversy given the fact Melbourne's Billy Slater would have won the top gong had he not been stripped of three points for earning a one-week suspension.
Orford, though, is a master at controlling games and he is a good fit in a relentless but also entertaining Manly side. His kicking game is superb and he also knows when to attack the line to create doubt in the minds of opposition players.
There are those who doubt his ability to step up on the big occasion and point to this as the reason he is yet to gain an Origin or test jersey. Orford has given up trying to silence the critics but he is hoping to crack the curse which has thwarted a Player of the Year winner from adding a premiership title for 22 years.
8. Jason Ryles
(Dragons) The big prop - he's 1.94m and 115kg - will soon be packing up his belongings in readiness for a shift to France to play for Les Catalans in the UK Super League next year after nine seasons with the Dragons. But he can do it knowing he will likely finish his NRL career on the back of a good year.
The 29-year-old has carved up the metres this season and is second only to Petero Civoniceva (139.1m a game to Civoniceva's 142.6m) but plays longer and makes more tackles. He's also significantly better than any other front rower at offloading in the tackle (50 this season), which makes him a more dangerous player.
9. Cameron Smith
(Storm, captain) Although Orford was named Dally M Player of the Year, Smith is the best player in the game. He is an intelligent player, invariably takes the right options, has a brilliant kicking game and even kicks goals to boot. He captains club, state and country so it would only be right if he skippered this prestigious side.
10. Petero Civoniceva
(Panthers) Some wondered whether the big Fijian-Australian would retain his superpowers away from the Broncos.
He did. His numbers have been as good as any time in his 10-year career in Brisbane and he averages the most metres a game of any of the NRL's front rowers.
The 32-year-old was the rock at a sometimes flaky Panthers and if Frank Pritchard had maintained his health and his head, they might have sneaked into the playoffs.
11. Frank Pritchard
(Panthers) For a player who supposedly doesn't want to be at the Panthers - he asked for but was denied a release earlier in the year and reportedly still wants out - he can sure play.
The 24-year-old Kiwi has taken over the mantle from Sonny Bill Williams as the most potent forward in the NRL. At times this year, he was unstoppable, offloading at will, or powering over the line from close range. His season, though, was cut short through a mysterious shoulder injury - the mystery was how serious it really was after reports from within the club it wasn't as grim as the player was making out.
If Pritchard can get the body and mind right, he can be as good as he wants to be.
12. Glenn Stewart
(Sea Eagles) The older of the Stewart brothers, Glenn is described by Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler as one of the most under-rated players in the NRL. Selection in the Herald on Sunday 1st XIII surely puts that to bed.
Stewart is a rugged, wholehearted player who gets through a power of work on attack and defence and slots in well in the Manly system. He has not always been recognised with representative honours but that will surely come.
One thing that does mark him and brother Brett out are the fact they both wear white tape around their boots, to honour their Nan, who passed away some time ago. Apparently she was their biggest fan but when they were younger, she couldn't see them properly so they both wore white tape to help her recognise them.
13. Micheal Luck
(Warriors) Another home-town choice? Maybe. But Luck is the sort of player every side needs. He's the glue that keeps the Warriors together. Only injury, his first in three seasons at Mt Smart Stadium, prevented him from making the most tackles in a regular season in consecutive years (he has made 866 so far this season, 43 short of Nathan Hindmarsh) when he missed two games. And in one match this season, he made a mammoth 56 tackles.
Luck might not be the most potent attacking weapon but there is enough firepower in this side to compensate for that. Luck did receive marks off for a dodgy beard.
Interchange:
14. Danny Buderus
(Knights)
15. Alan Tongue
(Raiders)
16. Steve Price
(Warriors)
17. Jeremy Smith
(Storm)
Coach: Neil Henry
(Raiders) Canberra were favourites for the wooden spoon at the start of the season but were seen as the dangerous floater heading into the first weekend of the finals. Henry has had to endure a horrible injury toll as well as problems with Todd Carney but has guided his side to the playoffs with an entertaining style of football.