It seems like yonks ago when Stephen Kearney rolled out a fresh crop of Kiwi rugby league players to take on the Kangaroos in the ANZAC test match. His selections raised many eye brows for some weird reason, what do you expect when half your key guys are injured!? With the Four Nations the next installment for international rugby league, what kind of team will Kearney roll out?

It'll be similar. If Kieran Foran and Thomas Leuluai are fit and healthy, they'll obviously come in for Isaac John and Siliva Havili but the rest of the team is a bit of a puzzle. It's not too often we as Kiwi league fans have been able to say that the selection of the Kiwis is a bit of a puzzle with a bit of a grin on our faces. Instead of reaching for this guy to cover that position or building a team around this guy or that guy, there are a few genuine headaches thanks to so many Kiwis playing decent footy for decent teams.

The forward pack, more so the propping crop is perhaps the most interesting. Last year at the World Cup, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Sam Moa reaped the rewards of their premiership winning season. This year you have to put them alongside Jesse Bromwich and Sam Kasiano. It's pretty hard to say who's better than who because they all offer slightly different skill sets but that's four guys who you'd think would be near certainties. If that's your prop rotation, you'd be made not to be smiling.

Chuck Isaac Luke in to the mix and you've got a bunch of guys who are capable of rolling up the guts as well as off loading with ease and setting up plays with some cheeky passing between the forwards. For me, Tohu Harris and Kevin Proctor are near certainties as well thanks to their all round play which you struggle to find any weaknesses in. Simon Mannering is Simon Mannering so he's there which doesn't leave much space for anyone else. Elijah Taylor's versatility and work rate means he deserves a bench spot while Greg Eastwood is someone who constantly sneaks under the radar. He's able to play through the middle and on an edge, he's got nifty foot work as well as the hands to off load and pass with ease. If Leuluai is fit, you'd expect him to fill a bench spot, depending on how Kearney wishes to play. If he wants some more size, Ben Matulino can slip in ... I'm not sure if Sam Rapira has played enough footy to demand a spot, but he could also be there.

The back line is a little more set in stone with Shaun Johnson and Kieran Foran likely to hold down the playmaking spots. I've got a sneaking sense that Josh Hoffman will emerge as the fullback thanks to his switch with Ben Barba at the Broncos ... whom Kearney is the assistant coach of. That could be a bit rough on Peta Hiku who would fill that #1 jersey with ease, but hey depth's good.

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is a lock on a wing and I reckon Manu Vatuvei is a lock on the other side ... Jason Nightingale to cover along with Hiku. Even the centre spots have become rather easy to pick with Dean Whare playing some very good footy with the Panthers and Gerard Beale continuing to go all right with the Dragons. What will be super duper interesting is how Konrad Hurrell fits in to the equation. My heart hopes that he keeps representing Tonga as he could put them on his back and do some special things especially with the young talent they have, but I obviously ain't gonna be upset if he wants to play for the Kiwis. If he wants to wear the black and white, do a haka and sing the national anthem then he's gotta be there over Beale maybe.

This leaves me with one very tricky, interesting and intriguing scenario. What's if Benji Marshall does some amazing stuff in the remaining games of the NRL season? What's if he leads the Dragons deep in to the finals? What's if he demands selection?

It's not something that any of us would have thought of a few months ago, but we've seen lay a solid foundation so far with the Dragons. He hasn't quite done a whole lot to demand selection, but he's shown that his desire is there and he's shown improvement each week. If he ticks all the boxes, he could find himself as a part of the squad ... which will ruffle feathers all over the show and he'll become the guy in the spotlight just cos' he's named in the squad. His naming in the squad wouldn't mean he's destined to play as he's presence could be important for this young crop of Kiwis. If he's in the mix then I have a feeling he and Leuluai could be competing for a bench spot, or ya never know both of them could be named on the bench to throw the cat amongst the pigeons.

This all adds a little bit of intrigue to the remainder of the NRL season, well for Kiwi fans anyway. NRL nerds will know just how talented the current group of Kiwis in the NRL are, every time you watch Jesse Bromwich, Sam Kasiano, Kieran Foran or Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, you smile. I'm optimistic as usual but it seems we've finally got a group who can do what we've always hoped for, but as we know it's whether they actually do that is the key.