Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga has opened up on how harsh it has been to select his squad ahead of the quarter final clash against Lebanon.
Meninga placed a heavy emphasis on giving all 24 players two games each during the group stage, allowing them all to stake a claim for a spot in the squad to head into the knockout phase.
The selection headache for Meninga is highlighted by the battle for the halfback spot as the incumbent Daly Cherry-Evans battles the in-form Nathan Cleary.
Meninga noted how tough finalising his squad has been, claiming this is the hardest decision of his coaching career.
“It’s so goddamn tough unfortunately because 24 players have played terrific footy, 24 players have bought into to what we’re trying to do,” Meninga said on SENQ Mornings.
“They love putting on the green and gold jersey, they all want to be a Kangaroo, and everyone wants to play at the backend of the tournament when it gets a bit tougher, we all want to win the World Cup.”
Meninga acknowledged that he has a final squad in mind that could feature both Cherry-Evans and Cleary.
“I’m pretty clear on the team I want to take forward, I just want to talk to the captain James Tedesco and the leadership group about it all,” he explained.
“At this stage, I think both can be in the team, you talk about our best 17, they are actually two of our best players.
“I feel as we move forward that we can accommodate both of them, we will just see where my conversations take me in the next 24 hours, I honestly feel that they can both play a role in our footy team.