Cooper Cronk might only be playing the Anzac rugby league test by default, but fullback Billy Slater has no doubt where the halfback ranks among the Melbourne Storm's Kangaroos connection.
Cronk plays his third test in three years because teammates Adam Blair and Brett Finch aggravated Jonathan Thurston's bung shoulder last Saturday night - and as preparations for Friday's test wind up clubmates continue to play a supportive role.
Slater, who practically hangs off Cronk's every move when the Storm is rolling forward, thought the playmaker was unfairly the underrated member of Melbourne's all-star quartet.
While Slater, Greg Inglis and Cameron Smith have regularly been rewarded with State of Origin and international honours - Cronk is the odd man out, having never played for Queensland.
He is also a stop-gap measure at best for Australia but Slater scoffed at suggestions Cronk could prove a weak link against the Kiwis.
"Coop's is the most influential player in our side," Slater said.
"He creates direction, he tells the boys where they've got to get to. He's got a great kicking game, he's a dangerous runner of the football and he's got a great passing game.
"He creates my plays for me."
Slater's scoring off a Cronk chip or grubber is a familiar play for the Storm while his understanding with Cameron Smith at the ruck has been a cornerstone of Melbourne's continued success.
Cronk, who made his debut in the halves alongside Greg Bird in the 58-0 trans-Tasman centenary test debacle at Wellington in 2007, admitted while the presence of Smith and Slater was comforting he could not rely on his mates to guide him through.
"There's another 13 or 14 players I have to strike a relationship with," he said.
Fortunately for Cronk he has been in the squad as recently as last October's Four Nations - where he earned his second cap off the interchange bench against France.
"I'm lucky enough to be familiar with the scenery of this team. I know the systems and the language we work off."
Still, starting with five-eighth Lockyer for the first in the captain's 51st test will still be a thrill.
"To run alongside a guy like that is a moment I'll cherish," he said.
Cronk was born the same year as Thurston (1983) and they have an almost identical number of first grade appearance: 146 for Cronk, 144 for Thurston.
Unluckily for him the comparisons end there for the halfbacks with Maroon blood - Thurston has 16 test caps, Cronk two.
"That's life. I'm a realist," Cronk said.
"Some things don't fall your way in life and you've got two options. Give up, or roll your sleeves up and do a bit of hard work. Hopefully, you'll get that phone call."
