Kevin Locke. Photo / Getty Images
Kevin Locke won't quite say as much but he will be desperate to hear his name read out when Kiwis coach Stephen Kearney names his line-up for Sunday's test match against the Kangaroos in Newcastle this week.
Locke came agonisingly close to realising his childhood dream of pulling on a Kiwis jumper in 2009 when his breakout NRL season was capped with a call-up to the Kiwis' Four Nations squad.
Close, though, was where things have remained for Locke.
Lance Hohaia held down the fullback shirt and Sam Perrett and Bryson Goodwin were preferred on the wings for all three matches of that unsuccessful 2009 campaign.
Uneven form on the wing for the Warriors meant Locke was never in the frame to break through last year, but with Hohaia nursing his knee ahead of a switch to St Helens and Josh Hoffman out of the reckoning with a serious knee injury, Locke's time may have arrived.
After a stellar season for the Warriors following his switch to fullback, Locke is in a two-horse race with also uncapped Broncos star Gerard Beale for the Kiwis' number one shirt.
The race appears too close to call, although Beale may have the front-running, having been included in the wider squad for the Anzac test in May.
On NRL form, though, Locke would appear to have the stronger case, with Beale playing second fiddle to Hoffman at the Broncos for much of the season.
"I'm just happy to be part of the squad and if I get the opportunity to play fullback I'll play fullback, but you never know what happens," Locke said.
While he didn't get on the field in 2009, Locke said he took plenty out of the tour.
"I didn't get an opportunity to play but the experience was a bit of a highlight. I haven't been given the opportunity [to play] yet but hopefully that will come very soon.
"It's not too far away from getting that opportunity, I guess. I just have to keep working hard and doing what I'm doing."
Having played four consecutive road finals for the Warriors, Locke could be forgiven for feeling a bit jaded. While he reported for Kiwis camp in good shape physically, the mental scars of the Warriors' grand final defeat had not completely faded.
"It took a couple of days to get over it and I'm still thinking about it now a little bit, what I could have done better. But it is in the past now, you've just got to look forward."
The fullback spot is far from the only area demanding Kearney's attention. Krisnan Inu's withdrawal yesterday for personal reasons coupled with the unavailability of Shaun Kenny-Dowall and Steve Matai leaves the squad without a specialist centre.
Inu, also an unused tourist in 2009, was a late call-up for Matai, who withdrew with a shoulder complaint. Kearney said there were no plans to immediately call for another replacement.
His centre options now include Warriors stand-ins Simon Mannering and Lewis Brown and Broncos utility Alex Glenn. Shifting Manly playmaker Kieran Foran to centre and starting Nathan Fien at halfback is another option.
Foran had an unhappy outing at centre in the 2009 defeat by England at Huddersfield, although he is a vastly more experienced and capable player now.
Adam Blair's unavailability for the two matches against Australia opens a sizeable hole in the pack for Kearney to plug. The Kiwis had hoped vice-captain Blair would be available as early as Sunday, however the Storm's failure to reach the NRL grand final and the scratching of the test against the Cook Islands means he still has two matches of his suspension for fighting with Glenn Stewart to serve.
With Blair having been used mainly at prop by Kearney in recent seasons, either Russell Packer or Kevin Proctor appears in line to make his debut.