Jackson Ford says he can't argue with his omission from the State of Origin series opener, insisting the snub has only made him hungrier for a NSW debut.
Warriors prop Ford has been unstoppable to begin 2026 and trails only Penrith superstar Nathan Cleary on the Dally M leaderboard after 11 rounds.
Among forwards, the 28-year-old leads the league for average run metres this season and is in the top three for average post-contact metres.
Ahead of last week's team selection, NSW hierarchy told Ford to pack extra bags in case he needed to fly straight from Magic Round into Blues camp.
Payne Haas' knee injury positioned Ford as a like-for-like replacement in the front row for his work rate and ability to play extended minutes in the middle.
But Ford's phone never rang, with Jacob Saifiti and Victor Radley named as two surprise selections in the forward pack.
Pressed on Ford's omission this week, NSW coach Laurie Daley said he needed to preference middle forwards who could also fill in on an edge.
Ford has started 39 NRL games at second row, more than any player on the Blues' six-man bench for game one.
Nevertheless, Ford had made peace with the snub by full-time of the Warriors' win over St George Illawarra on Saturday night.
"They've got a really good team there, so I can't argue with it," Ford said.
"I've just got to keep doing my job here and hopefully some accolades can come."
Since making his first-grade debut with the Dragons in 2019, Ford had barely rated a mention in the Origin selection discussion until this year.
Ford said he had "100 per cent" grown more determined from his omission.
"I'm just stoked to be in the conversation," he said.
"You look back a couple of years and I probably wouldn't have thought I could do it. It's a big achievement for me to be in that conversation."
In his first game since the snub, Ford played more than 50 minutes at second row after injuries to Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Eddie Ieremia-Toeava forced a reshuffle on the left edge.
He impressed coach Andrew Webster with his attitude during a tough week.
"I reckon he would've received a lot of text messages this week," Webster said.
"(An Origin debut) hasn't come yet, but if he keeps applying himself, it'll come. We're really proud of the way he's handled this week."
