'He's bulletproof': Why Dylan Edwards could take another jersey off James Tedesco

Over to you, Mal Meninga.

When the Kangaroos play next, he'll have one difficult choice to make.

But it appears the answer may be easy after Dylan Edwards' masterclass in the Origin arena.

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At fullback in the Australian jersey, James Tedesco is the incumbent. He's also the captain.

However, like he did with the Blues jersey, Edwards has gone and grabbed the Kangaroos No.1 spot with on-field performances.

As Phil Gould put it when Edwards was selected for game one, Tedesco wasn't sacked but simply "replaced by a better player".

"He's churning out numbers unlike anything seen before," Gould said on Wide World of Sports' Six Tackles with Gus.

Game three shaped as the big showdown between the fullbacks.

Reece Walsh was the star of the show last year when he blitzed NSW.

When Edwards starred in game two, Meninga was asked on SEN about the future fullback call. He refused to divulge on his mindset.

"I'm the Australian coach ... I've got to be very careful what I say," he said at the time.

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But now it appears his hand will be forced.

Edwards produced a man of the match performance on Wednesday and confirmed what most people suspected. The Panthers fullback is made for the Origin arena.

"He's an outstanding rugby league player," Maroons icon Paul 'Fatty' Vautin said on Nine's coverage.

"He's mirrored here what he's been doing for Penrith for the last five, six, seven years.

"He's an outstanding player. He gets his hands on the ball more than any fullback I've ever seen and he's always productive. Once he's got the ball he'll either make 10 metres or he'll put someone through a hole. He's just great, he doesn't stop."

For Walsh, while he didn't stop trying to attack the Blues line, it just didn't happen for him this series.

The Maroons fullback didn't appear to be at 100 per cent, with coach Billy Slater putting it down to him being hit off the ball. Walsh was knocked out by an illegal Joseph Suaalii hit early in game one.

While Walsh has still been potent this season, it appears opposition teams have started to find ways to defend him.

Gould believes the difference between Edwards and Walsh comes down to what they base their game around.

"For this level, he's (Edwards) bulletproof because he doesn't base his game on creativity or finesse, he bases his game on sheer effort the whole time," he said.

"Every now and then he's got a play in him.

"You go to Reece Walsh, who bases his game on flair and attack and speed and steps, so things can go wrong for him. Nothing can go wrong for Dylan Edwards."

At 22, though, time is on Walsh's side.

Edwards is 28, and didn't hit that sweet spot of his career until 2021 when the Panthers three-peat began.

"Four years ago he wouldn't have set up a try," former Blues coach Brad Fittler said.

"He would've run for 300 metres but wouldn't set up a try. Now he's setting up tries, making breaks, supporting everywhere on the field, he's evolved."

How Walsh's game evolves will be intriguing but his time in a Kangaroos jersey now appears an age away.

The decision to pick Edwards out of position on the wing last year during the Pacific Championships didn't really work and the same could be said if a similar experiment was tried on the Broncos fullback.

Whatever way Meninga goes, he's spoilt for choice.