For the briefest moment, it appeared John Sutton had fulfilled his ambition to finally play State of Origin.
Having been pitted against Canterbury's Josh Reynolds in a train-off for a bench spot, the NSWRL even went so far as to declare via Twitter the South Sydney playmaker the winner for last year's series opener.
"NSW VB Blues Coach Laurie Daley has just announced John Sutton as Kurt Gidley's replacement. #uptheblues #Origin" was the official message via social media.
The Rabbitohs duly followed up by posting the "news" on their own website. The only problem was, it was wrong. Reynolds, not Sutton, was in fact Daley's choice to face the Maroons. It's the closest Sutton has come to a Blues jersey during his decade-long NRL career.
Meanwhile, Reynolds subsequently went on to not only cement the five-eighth spot but also be a part of the side that ended the Maroons' stranglehold on the event.
On Sunday, the pair will face off again at ANZ Stadium in the quest for an even bigger prize. But they both recall, with differing emotions, how their lives changed after being pitted together on that fateful day.
"I was only there the one day and got the flick," Sutton said. "It was disappointing, being so close and not getting a start. It was an unusual situation, but I guess you would do anything to put the blue jersey on."
While the rugby league world was in the process of congratulating Sutton on his "selection", the South Sydney captain wasn't fooled. "I already knew [I'd missed out], Laurie came up to me before that got out to let me know I wasn't in the side," he said.
Reynolds described that closely scrutinised training session as a life-changing one. "It was a bit of a crazy week," he recalled. "In the end we spent some time in there together so we got to know each other a little bit.
"It was definitely something different. I've never done that before but in the end it was probably the right thing to do. It's something Loz had to do to pick the player he wanted to go with.
"For me to get picked, it started off my very small Origin career that I've had. I'm very grateful and can't wait to hopefully keep it going."
The emergence of pivot Luke Keary has subsequently pushed Sutton into the back row, although both the Coogee Randwick Wombats junior and Reynolds will likely clash at times. Both will have a major impact on the result of the grand final.
"It's going to be a good challenge, a bit of a different one because he's on an edge, but I'm sure we'll both be ready for the game," Reynolds said.
Sutton was also full of praise for the man who snatched away his Blues jersey.
"I watched him on the weekend, he's one of those players that always brings a lot of energy and brings a lot to his team. He's definitely a player to watch," Sutton said. "He's a good bloke, a good fella off the field. I'm expecting big things from him this week."
Daley said the train-off was designed to put both players under pressure to see how they reacted.
"It was one of those ones where we watched them and saw what we could best use," he said. "It was difficult because we knew both of them would have done a great job, but we decided that was the way we wanted to go.
"It's always good when you've got competition because that creates that rivalry and everyone has that pressure to perform. That's a good thing, I think."
While Sutton missed out on that occasion, Daley said he would be considered for future Origin campaigns if he continued his fine form for Souths.
"Sutto's got that ability to play as a five-eighth or as a back-rower," he said.
