In the wake of the AFL announcing the upcoming Western Australia versus South Australia State of Origin game set for next year, I decided to take a look at what the SA team could look like when it graces the field for the first time since 1999.
SA will travel to Optus Stadium to take on WA in 2027, before hosting Victoria in 2028. The third year (2029) will cycle back to the start of the new series, with WA hosting Victoria in Perth.
Players are assigned their state of eligibility based on the location of the junior club from which a given player was drafted.
This side was selected not just on skill, but on fit, role and team balance.
Forwards
HF: Izak Rankine, Darcy Fogarty, Alex Neal-Bullen
FF: Lincoln McCarthy, Riley Thilthorpe, Jack Lukosius
South Australia's forward line is filled with a mixture of Adelaide and Port Adelaide players, as Alex Neal-Bullen and Darcy Fogarty are key pieces for Adelaide that can find the goals when called upon. Izak Rankine serves as the side's game-changer who can cause chaos in the midfield and flip the game on its head in a second with his goal-kicking ability.
Riley Thilthorpe is the obvious pick to serve as the team's main target off the back of his All-Australian, 60-goal campaign last year, while Lincoln McCarthy and Jack Lukosius are both having solid seasons that can give the side something different, whether it is Lukosius' kicking or McCarthy's marking.
While not as powerful and explosive as Western Australia's forward line, having the use of Rankine alongside others smalls who can cause impact like McCarthy and Lukosius gives the side a nice 50/50 balance of small forwards to bounce off the big forward targets from the Crows.
