If Origin forward Corey Horsburgh wanted to force his way back into the Canberra Raiders' NRL side, he did himself plenty of favours with a stellar performance in NSW Cup at the weekend.
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Horsburgh was omitted from the Raiders lineup last week despite being available for selection, having finished serving a suspension carried over from last season.
But the Queenslander accepted the challenge set by coach Ricky Stuart to get some match minutes under his belt and prove he was ready for an NRL return by putting on an impressive showing in reserve grade.
Horsburgh played 65 minutes as starting prop alongside fellow in-form forward Trey Mooney, and the pair wreaked havoc on the Warriors' defence at Seiffert Oval on Saturday in a dominant 42-4 victory to remain undefeated this season.
'Big Red' had a team-high 34 tackles and 151 total metres from just 12 runs that included 64 post-contact metres, as well as five tackle breaks and two offloads.
Mooney kept knocking at the door asking for his NRL call-up, too, with a monster 197 total metres and a try.
Horsburgh will be eyeing a return to starting lock, however, young English import Morgan Smithies has earned the trust of Stuart with a confident start to his NRL career only three games in.
If Smithies is backed to start at 13 again, that could mean Horsburgh's path back is via the bench in place of either Pasami Saulo or Emre Guler.
Stuart is also set to welcome back New Zealand international Sebastian Kris after the speedy and experienced centre was sidelined last Friday due to a concussion sustained in round two.
Before failing his head injury assessment, Kris enjoyed an electric combination with Xavier Savage on the wing, and Stuart may be tempted to pair the best mates together again.
If Kris is green-lit to come into the NRL side over last week's 18th man James Schiller, it could mean Nick Cotric, Albert Hopoate or Savage drop out for this Sunday's match in the Sutherland Shire.
The Raiders will travel to Sydney to face the Cronulla Sharks in what will be fullback Jordan Rapana's 200th game for the Green Machine.
Rapana has turned back the clock playing in the No.1 jersey full-time this season after Kris spent much of last year in the role.
Beating out young up-and-comer Chevy Stewart to the first grade fullback spot in pre-season, Rapana has shown no signs of giving up the gig.
The 34-year-old has played a key role in Canberra's much-improved defence this season, as well as featuring heavily in their potent attack, scoring two tries and an assist in three games, and averaging 178 total metres to help the Raiders sit third on the NRL ladder.
Rapana has been a mainstay at the Raiders since joining the club in 2014, but his stats early into this season put him on track to have his best year yet in a lengthy NRL career.
The rusty Sharks will be hungry to bounce back this week after copping a beating from the under-fire Tigers in round three that also left Cronulla with a significant injury ward.
Prop Royce Hunt suffered a calf injury in the warm-up and duo Dale Finucane (head gash) and Toby Rudolf (ankle) did not finish the game, leaving them unlikely to line up for the clash against Canberra, though there is hope Braden Hamlin-Uele (knee) returns.
NRL round 4
Sunday: Cronulla Sharks v Canberra Raiders, Shark Park. 6.15pm.