You know it. I know it. Hell our current and past coach know it. Paul Clough will not let you down.

And now we know he is more than dependable. In a poll on RedVee.net, he is voted as the stand out performer this season. Yet his efforts still go unnoticed by the press, and most importantly, the England coach.

This is far from a "my teams player isn't picked it isn't fair" comment. Ideally, mid season, I wouldn't like any S! players involved in an international that distracts, and takes away future effort to winning back the Super League, and reclaiming the Cup.

However, very few players are as deserving a place as Clough. In fact, it is testament to his quiet nature that he has made over 70 appearances already.

Of course, I have no doubt Cloughy has taken Smith over looking him on the chin. Like when he stood back up after David Ferriol knocked him down in the cup tie a couple of weeks back, he will just get on with it.

Amazing though it is he flies under the radar, his craft and no nonsense style is precisely the attitude required to take on the packs of Australia and New Zealand. He is not intimidated one bit, and fires back a mad man stare of "try and tackle me, I dare ya!"

What is also amazing about Clough is his ability to mix it for an apparently small frame. Ok, 6ft and over 15 stone isn't the smallest, but he is hardly your archetypal bash and barge forward. Yet his game offers so much more. As mentioned, there is his security, he has made just five errors this season. He has missed only twelve tackles out of over three hundred, and he regularly puts in stints of 60 minutes or more.

So why is he so over looked? It is hard to tell. But one thing is for sure, if he continues to develop and grow as a player, Tony Smith will wonder what a mistake he has made.