Vodafone Warriors star winger Manu Vatuvei has been selected to play in the NRL's first-ever All Star team.
As revealed in the print edition of the Herald this morning, a public vote saw the 23-year-old international being named in the side as the Warriors' representative ahead of Micheal Luck, Simon Mannering and Sam Rapira.
"It's an awesome honour to make the team," he said today.
Fellow New Zealand internationals Benji Marshall (Wests Tigers) and Adam Blair (Melbourne Storm) join Vatuvei in the All Stars team named to play the NRL Indigenous All Stars on February 13 at Skilled Park.
As captain and vice captain of the Kiwis, Marshall and Blair earned automatic selection for the team. As skipper of the Kangaroos, Brisbane's Darren Lockyer was an automatic choice.
Kangaroos vice captain Cameron Smith's automatic inclusion in the squad brings the number of players from reigning NRL premiers Melbourne to three.
* NRL All Stars
Coach: Wayne Bennett
Billy Slater (Melbourne)
Israel Folau (Brisbane)
Michael Jennings (Penrith)
Matt Cooper (St George-Illawarra)
Manu Vatuvei (Warriors)
Darren Lockyer (Brisbane) - Australian test captain
Benji Marshall (Wests) - NZ test captain
Adam Blair (Melbourne) - NZ vice captain
Cameron Smith (Melbourne) - Australian vice captain
Dave Taylor (Souths)
Anthony Watmough (Manly)
Gareth Ellis (Wests)
Luke O'Donnell (North Queensland)
Interchange
Kurt Gidley (Newcastle)
Anthony Tupou (Cronulla)
Nate Myles (Sydney)
Alan Tongue (Canberra)
Luke Bailey (Gold Coast)
Josh Morris (Canterbury)
Jarryd Hayne (Parramatta)
- NZ HERALD ONLINE
NRL: Vatuvei joins All Stars
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