Gold Coast coach Garth Brennan has finally lost patience with star recruit Bryce Cartwright, dropping him for Friday's NRL clash with form team South Sydney.
The Penrith utility arrived amid plenty of hype this season but has since been the subject of derision thanks to a series of defensive lapses.
With a healthy squad to choose from, Brennan left Cartwright out of the side to play the Rabbitohs at Robina and issued a challenge to the maligned talent.
"Everyone's fit and healthy and it's a good competition for spots and if you are lacking in any area you'll miss out," Brennan told reporters on Tuesday.
"It's about putting our best 17 on the field and the 17 named at this stage, where the form is, is the best 17 we can field.
"He (Cartwright) has got some deficiencies he needs to work on, it's up to him to work on those and wait on his opportunity."
Cartwright has come in for heavy criticism for an apparent lack of commitment in defence, with pundits lining up to highlight his hesitance to engage on several occasions.
While acknowledging he needed to work on his defence, Brennan said it was Cartwright's poor reading of play that had put him in those vulnerable positions.
Brennan has named both Jai Arrow and Jarrod Wallace in his side and says, despite the short turnaround, the Queensland forwards will play if they get through Wednesday night's State of Origin unscathed.
If either don't it could yet provide an opportunity for Cartwright, or fellow top-flight discards Kane Elgey and Konrad Hurrell, to return.
Emerging winger Phillip Sami returns to the side in place of Tonga centre Hurrell, while Will Matthews (concussion) has been cleared after three weeks on the sideline.
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