Nathan Merritt has been restored to the South Sydney line-up for Thursday’s mouth-watering NRL season opener against Sydney Roosters.

Merritt was dumped for the Charity Shield clash against St George Illawarra after sleeping in and missing a training session, but has been named on the wing for the Allianz Stadium encounter.

Beau Champion will play in the centres for the first time in two years for the club having returned to Redfern from the Gold Coast via Melbourne.

Ben Te’o makes his debut for the Souths following his move from Brisbane.

Skipper Michael Crocker has been named on the bench with coach Michael Maguire selecting a 20-man squad.

Team: Greg Inglis, Nathan Merritt, Dylan Farrell, Beau Champion, Andrew Everingham, John Sutton, Adam Reynolds, Sam Burgess, Issac Luke, Roy Asotasi, Chris McQueen, Ben Te’o, Ben Lowe. Interchange: Nathan Peats, Michael Crocker (capt), Jeff Lima, George Burgess, Dave Tyrrell, Jason Clark, Bryson Goodwin. (Three to be omitted)