New South Wales coach Laurie Daley has dropped his Emerging Origin Squad to get together in January ahead of the 2017 NRL Season and if anyone has any concerns about the future of NSW, this squad should ease those concerns somewhat. While a bunch of these players could make legit cases to get a run in next year's State of Origin series, many of these lads will be left to simmer away for another year or two and that should allow NSW to bring through a highly talented wave of youngsters, right when Queensland's veterans are moving on.

Shannon Boyd from Canberra and Jake Trbojevic from Manly have already represented their country, so you can consider them at least in the mix for a Blues jersey next year. Trbojevic is a lock in the NRL and with Daley appearing not to be the biggest fan of Trent Merrin, there's a chance that Trbojevic could take Paul Gallen's No.13 jersey. 

If Boyd can kick on from a rewarding 2016 season, he'll most likely be in the running for a bench spot although the quality of the big boppers selected in this squad will make things very interesting. Trbojevic and Boyd are both classified as 'middle forwards' and they will compete with Reagan Campbell-Gillard (Penrith), Ryan James (Gold Coast), Jordan McLean (Melbourne) and Junior Paulo (Canberra) to make a big impression on Daley and Peter Sterling in camp.

Nathan Peats (GC) looks set to be the next cab off the rank for the dummy half spot and while we know that the Daley x Robbie Farah relationship is strong, Peats is worthy of an Origin spot. Farah will have that starting spot locked up, however an off-season injury is currently making things very interesting and with Michael Ennis now retired and Mitch Rein struggling this year at the Dragons, Peats is the logical choice to back up Farah.

Bryce Cartwright (Penrith) is the only edge forward selected and with plenty of depth on their edges, it's hard to see Cartwright being given a shot next year. NSW have Boyd Cordner, Tyson Frizell, Josh Jackson and Wade Graham who are ahead of Cartwright and with plenty of power through the middle, the likes of Frizell and Jackson are probably more likely to feature on the edges than in the middle as they have done previously.

The forwards named are all coming off a 2016 season in which most of them flourished with greater minutes and responsibility with their respective NRL clubs. Apart from James who has been a staple in the Titans' forward pack for a number of seasons now, the likes of Boyd, Paulo, Campbell-Gillard, McLean and Trbojevic all reached greater heights this year thanks to more prominent roles in their club's forward pack. You could say that they are all 'in form' however it's more a case of increased minutes allowing them to have a greater impact on the game.

Joey Leilua (Canberra) and James Roberts (Brisbane) are obvious selections, which when combined with the selections of Tom Trbojevic (Manly) and Latrell Mitchell (Sydney Roosters), paint a puzzling picture for a bloke like Josh Dugan, or Michael Jennings. Leilua and Roberts are centres who fall into the 'attacking weapon' category instead of the 'solid defender' category and the x-factor they offer will ensure that once next season starts, everyone will be paying close attention to how Leilua, Roberts, Dugan and Jennings are playing.

If Leilua's still in dynamic touch for Canberra, then Dugan's right-edge spot will be in danger and the presence of Jarryd Hayne, Matt Moylan, James Tedesco, Trbojevic and Mitchell won't allow easy passage into the No.1 jersey for Dugan. Trbojevic and Mitchell are some way off starting an Origin game though and they'll benefit from just knowing they are in the mix and being around the group.

Perhaps the most exciting selection is that of Nathan Cleary (Penrith) because he's the purest halfback there is in the NRL, evident in the fact that he appears to have leap-frogged the likes of Luke Brooks. Cleary's organisational skills are top-shelf, while we also saw him kick well under pressure this year and run the ball with vigour which opens up all sorts of opportunities outside him. 

With so many halfbacks selected too young to represent NSW, Cleary won't get a run for a few more years as everyone's been scorned one too many times. With Moylan a long-term option at fullback for NSW, or in the halves, Cleary's combination with Moylan and his own natural halfback gifts have him destined for Origin at some point in the next three-four years.

Here's my 2017 NSW Origin team as of right now, favouring the experienced lads...

Moylan, Ferguson, Dugan, Jennings, Mansour.
Maloney, Pearce.
Woods, Farah, Tamou.
Cordner, Merrin, Jackson.
Bench: Bird, Klemmer, Boyd, Frizell.