Life is never that black and white, or sky blue and maroon. The unspoken rule of never publicly condemning a rival player has slightly relaxed in recent years but it’s still in place, especially in Origin, where the most innocent of quotes are photocopied and glued to the dressing-room wall. But it doesn't mean nothing is being said behind closed doors. Some Queensland players in the past haven't liked Cherry-Evans. It's a fact. It takes two of the most respected individuals sitting up there, in the Queensland pantheon, to properly explain the Daly dilemma. Being selected for this match was a big relief for him. He never thought he’d get back in there Trent Barrett Former captain and current Maroons selector Darren Lockyer confirms the suspicion that Cherry-Evans initially struggled to fit into a side loaded with strong personalities like Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Thurston and Cronk.

“Origins are won and lost on character,” Lockyer says. “It’s all about mental toughness more than skill. There is no doubt that Cameron, Johnathan, Cooper and Billy had a fair bit of influence on who played in that team. You could trust their judgement because they know what works and what doesn’t. With the guys we had playing in our spine, it was hard for Daly when he came in. For him and anyone else.” Ask former captain and coach Mal Meninga if Cherry-Evans struggled to fit into the Maroons culture and he says this: “He did struggle — but he wanted to be part of it as well. You ask the players, he got on with them well. But he struggled to fit into what we wanted to do. He’s more mature now. He probably understands what it means to be part of a team; how to work with others. “We’re all different characters and personalities but what matters is how you mix in a team environment. Everyone comes from different backgrounds, and have different ways of doing things, but it comes down to whether you are willing and courageous enough to fit in. 'Matured': Cherry-Evans will get the chance to call the shots for his state this time around. Credit:AAP “A lot of the animosity [from supporters] stems from his decision around the Gold Coast. [When Cherry-Evans backflipped on a deal with the Titans to stay at the Sea Eagles]. All that sort of stuff. But enough is enough. Time to let his footy do the talking … Poor bugger, he has been ostracised, hasn’t he?”

Well, he has been. Cherry-Evans and his management manipulated the Sea Eagles, the Titans, the media, the system to turn a $4.4 million, four-year contract into a $10m, eight-year deal at Manly. Smart work — but it won’t win you many friends. A few weeks ago, former Manly teammate Anthony Watmough resembled a bull in a china shop when he said Cherry-Evans “turned into a f..kwit” after they won the 2011 premiership. As dynamite as Watmough’s remarks to an obscure podcast were, they merely confirmed what had been denied but privately known for years about Cherry-Evans: that senior players at Manly did not like him. Former Manly coach Geoff Toovey won’t wade too far into the argument but does offer this: “When you get a group of 30 players together, whether it’s sport or work or girl guides, there will be some you will get on with and some you won’t. As long as you respect what they bring to the field.” Cherry-Evans’ drunken fight with teammate Jackson Hastings following a match — and trip to a strip club — earlier this year in Gladstone sparked an old fire. The club sided with their captain; partly, no doubt, because Hastings was far more expendable than the $10m superstar on a long-term deal.

Sea Eagles coach Trent Barrett has been Cherry-Evans’ most vocal supporter in the last two years. Barrett says his halfback is good company, good to have a quiet beer with. He says he’s impressed with his resilience. “He’s had to learn to be,” Barrett says. “He doesn’t let too much worry him but I know deep down, behind the facade that we can all put on, that the criticism does hurt. That’s his biggest asset: his mental strength. He doesn’t kick stones. I can read him well and know when he’s doing it tough — but he’s very resilient. A lot of people don’t see how hard he’s worked in the last two years on his game and his leadership at this joint. He sincerely wants the best for the club. We gave him the captaincy for a reason.” Barrett understands what it's like to feel the heat of fans. He wore much of it when he was at the Dragons as they fumbled chances to win a premiership. Perhaps he can empathise with Cherry-Evans. “He does get a lot put on him, whether it’s right or wrong,” Barrett says. “We know what happens in our four walls. We’ve had a lot of shit to deal with this season and we don’t have a lot of senior players. So he’s had to carry a lot of the weight. “Being selected for this match was a big relief for him. He never thought he’d get back in there.”

Push aside whether you’d want to have a beer with Cherry-Evans, whether you can cop the politician-like way he speaks to the media, whether he should've honoured his handshake and gone to the Titans. What counts most is whether he can play and on that score he’s yet to prove himself at Origin level. Indeed, as this reporter understands it, Queensland coach Kevin Walters and selectors Gene Miles and Lockyer were undecided right up until last Sunday night about picking him. Cherry-Evans was too anxious to answer Walters’ phone calls because he anticipated bad news. He doesn't realise how close he was to hearing it. On Sunday, Walters was telling some that Ben Hunt would remain at halfback. Around the same time, others well placed within the QRL were adamant young gun Ash Taylor would be named at halfback, with Hunt moving to the bench and Cherry-Evans forgotten altogether. It’s unclear what changed: whether Walters was over-ruled — as he was with Slater’s omission for game one last year — or if the trio were genuinely undecided.

Either way, it demonstrates how much Queensland are still uncertain if Cherry-Evans is their halfback of the future. Lockyer doesn’t run away from the question. “Yeah, we are torn,” he says. “Ash Taylor came into the picture. Winning this game is a priority but so is working out our future. There are three guys in the mix: DCE for this game, Ash isn’t far away, and Michael Morgan when he comes back. The jersey is there to be taken. Nobody is owning it right now. DCE gets a crack in one game, but when we sit down at the selection table next year, all three guys will be in the picture.” It’s hardly a ringing endorsement, although the time is right for Cherry-Evans — because it's often been wrong. Fitting in: Cherry-Evans in Maroons camp this week with Billy Slater. Credit:AAP In 2013, when Meninga was coaching the Maroons, he was seen as the perfect “14” — the modern-day label for the utility off the bench. “We anointed him,” Meninga says.

What he couldn’t do was make the most of his two chances as the starting halfback — in game two in 2014 and 2015 — when Cronk was injured. Cherry-Evans wore the blame for those defeats like Mitchell Pearce wore most of NSW’s. “What people forget is that in 2015 he had a shoulder problem, which NSW targeted very well,” Meninga says. “He played busted, he played tough. Externally, he was blasted. “But that’s when Michael Morgan came along and we had to make a decision: if Cooper comes back into the footy team, is Michael or Daly our 14? I called Daly and had a conversation with him. Morgan was robust in defence. He got the nod based on that. But Daly handled it well. It’s three years on. I’ve been listening to how he speaks all week. He’s definitely matured.” Opportunity is knocking. For years, Smith controlled the Queensland attack out of dummy half. There’s a fresh desire for a truly dominant halfback now Smith has retired from rep footy. Another one of those murmurs about Cherry-Evans not fitting into the Queensland set-up was his inability to play alongside Thurston, apparently over-calling and getting in the way of a player who will one day become an Immortal.

This time, Cherry-Evans can take control. It’s his team to run. His kicking game and game management can perfectly complement five-eighth Cameron Munster’s free-spirited play. “They’re both opportunistic players,” Barrett says. “Their off-the-cuff football is as good as anyone. I want NSW to win but if they get good field position and go-forward they will be hard to defend. I would’ve loved to see them with Kalyn Ponga. Now there’s some strike.” We’ll see soon enough if Cherry-Evans can get at least one arm into the No.7 jumper that's up grabs. He’ll never get a better chance, in a match that won’t decide the series. “The past is the past,” Lockyer says. “I’m not saying that if he doesn’t play well that it’s over. But playing at Suncorp, for Queensland, in Billy’s last game, he should enjoy the moment and be himself.” Lockyer laughs.