Daly Cherry-Evans admitted he is "very disappointed" after being overlooked by Queensland for the State of Origin decider, though the out-of-favour Manly Sea Eagles star is already eyeing a Maroons return in 2018.
Cherry-Evans has not added to his six Origin appearances since 2015 and the Sea Eagles captain's wait will extend to another year after he was snubbed in favour of debutant Ben Hunt for next week's game three against New South Wales in Brisbane.
The 28-year-old half-back's fine form at NRL level saw him emerge as a possible replacement for injured star Johnathan Thurston but Maroons head coach Kevin Walters turned to untried Broncos player Hunt for the do-or-die clash on July 12.
Speaking about his snub on Tuesday, Cherry-Evans said: "I understand the decision but [I am] very disappointed personally.
"I knew obviously through the injury of JT that there was an opportunity available and over the past couple of weeks and throughout the year I have tried to put my best foot forward to get back in the Origin arena.
"It's not to be this series so I can move forward pretty quickly knowing that there is no more Origin to be played after this game and look forward to the rest of this season with Manly.
"Just understanding that there was an opportunity available and I was in the mix – I wasn't naive to the fact that I was in calculations, so missing out hurts more than not being in contention at all.
"When I walked away from last season I made it a personal goal to make sure I put myself back in contention for these sorts of sides and I feel like I have done that and it would have been nice to seal it off with a spot."
Photo: Getty Images (Manly Sea Eagles star Daly Cherry-Evans)