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DALY Cherry-Evans has surged into the Test frame as Australia's youth policy and the Cowboys' poor form puts pressure on halves Cooper Cronk and Johnathan Thurston.
Thurston's scrumbase showdown with Cherry-Evans in the Cowboys-Manly clash on Friday night has taken on added significance for the Anzac Test on May 2.
The Thurston-Cronk halves alliance steered Australia to World Cup glory last November but Kangaroos coach Tim Sheens says Cherry-Evans, Australia's utility in the World Cup final, is now an option for a starting role when the Test side is named on Sunday week.
Statistics obtained by The Courier-Mail show Cherry-Evans is outperforming Thurston and Cronk in a number of key areas.
Daly Cherry-Evans celebrates. Source: News Limited
While axing one of the Kangaroos' incumbent halves would be a major shock, Sheens said Cherry-Evans was Australia's poster boy for generational change.
Cronk is still searching for peak form after his return from shoulder surgery, while Thurston has been patchy in the Cowboys' slump to 12th place after six rounds.
"Cherry-Evans is keeping them (Thurston and Cronk) honest," Sheens told The Courier-Mail.
"There is always pressure there, I'm not going to say it's on Cooper Cronk specifically, it's on the halves.
"Cherry is our third option with Cooper and Johnathan and the fact is Cherry's form has been very good.
"He was our utility player last year and did a good job filling in there.
"There is competition with nearly every position and I'm sure the current two will do their best to beat Cherry off.''
Daly Cherry-Evans makes a break against Wales. Source: AP
Fox Sports Stats data shows Cherry-Evans (8.8) is making more runs a game than Thurston (8) and twice as many as Cronk (4.2) this season.
Cherry-Evans has more tackle busts (18) than Thurston and Cronk combined (16), produces more offloads and averages more running metres.
However, Cronk and Thurston are clearly superior in try assists. They have set up nine and five tries respectively this year, compared to the Manly playmaker's meagre tally of one.
Test selectors are acutely aware of the need to inject fresh blood. Of the 17-man squad that won last year's World Cup, only Cherry-Evans, James Tamou, Andrew Fifita and Josh Papalii were under 25. Thurston turns 31 on Friday week, while Cronk's 31st birthday is in December.
Manly's Daly Cherry-Evans tries to beat an attempted tackle. Source: News Corp Australia
"There is no doubt for the next World Cup there is a bit of transition happening," Sheens said.
"I supervised Petero (Civoniceva) and Darren Lockyer's retirement and when we played England last year, we were the oldest team to play for Australia.
"That doesn't mean we're Dad's Army but there is so many guys in that late 20s-early 30s range that there's going to be some transition over the next few years.
"Without injury, you could see a lot of guys wanting to play on but there is the pressure of other guys coming through and Cherry-Evans is a classic example.''
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