Knights NRLW dynamo Jesse Southwell has expressed disappointment at missing out on selection in the Australian Jillaroos squad for the Rugby League World Cup next month.
Despite proving she was not only capable of playing, but excelling at the elite level of the domestic game at 17 years of age, Southwell was overlooked by Australian selectors who named a 22-player squad on Monday.
They were unable to find a place for the teenage halfback, who steered Newcastle to their first NRLW premiership in her debut season.
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Southwell's NRLW efforts, which earned her the league's rookie-of-the-year award, followed her gold-medal winning campaign playing rugby sevens for Australia at the Commonwealth Games in England in August.
"I was sad, but that's the way they wanted to go," Southwell told the Newcastle Herald of missing out on Jillaroos selection.
The Cameron Park product, who scored a try and set up another in Newcastle's 32-12 grand final victory over Parramatta on Sunday, had been fancied to make the squad given her breakout rookie season.
But the selectors opted for Brisbane halves Ali Brigginshaw and Tarryn Aiken, along with Titans halfback Lauren Brown, and found no room in the extended squad for the Knights' playmaker.
Southwell said she "definitely" wasn't expecting to be chosen, but would have loved to have made the trip to England for the Women's World Cup, which begins on November 1.
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While disappointed, she said she was just pleased to have lived out a childhood dream of playing NRLW with her older sister Hannah at the Knights this season.
"Of course I wanted to be picked and play for Australia, it's an honour," Southwell said at the civic reception put on for the Knights at City Hall on Tuesday evening.
"When I came here I wanted to win a premiership, [but] my first and foremost goal was to play with my sister.
"I got to do that and it was really, really cool.
"It's disappointing that I didn't get picked, but that's obviously the way they wanted to go."
Southwell could have continued playing rugby sevens following the Commonwealth Games and been part of Australia's side that won the Rugby World Cup Sevens last month in Cape Town.
But she chose to return to rugby league and the Knights, who she first linked with as a 14-year-old - signing a deal with the club as part of their push to secure entry into the NRLW.
She required NRL approval to play in the competition being under 18, a green light that CEO Andrew Abdo must now be pleased he gave.
Reflecting on her maiden NRLW campaign, Southwell said it had been a learning experience but she "can't wait" to do it all over again.
"There's so many things I've learnt individually as a person and a player," she said.
"Just getting back into league was something that I had to learn.
"But there's so much that I still have to learn, which is really fun and I can't wait to do it.
"There's so many people I want to learn from."
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