Big-hearted Doug Bollinger, 34-years-old and bowling fire and brimstone for NSW, is expected to come into contention when the national selectors analyse the replacements for Mitchell Starc after stress fractures in his right foot forced him to retire from Adelaide's historic day/night Test.

Starc's misfortune opens the door for Bollinger to add to the 12 Tests he played between 2009/10, and NSW fast bowling coach Geoff Lawson was adamant the left-armer – who is bowling in the high 140s, swinging the ball and working brilliantly with the old ball – deserves to be "up there" after yet another relentless effort to finish Queensland's first innings off at the SCG.

Bollinger returned to the dressing room with an economical 2-40 from 26 overs – 13 of which were maidens and Lawson hopes he's rewarded.

"We saw him bowl a ball in his first over [against Queensland on Saturday morning] that bounced and climbed ... it was a remarkable delivery and it looked super quick," said Lawson.

"And that was good on the second day after Doug had been in the field all day on Friday, it shows he has the endurance to get through."

Bollinger was dropped from the Australian Test team in 2010 when he finished the Adelaide Test against England with 1-130 from 29 overs. While he fared better than Peter Siddle in what was Australia's most crushing defeat on home soil in 50 years – Siddle finished with 0-131 off 30 – the Sydneysider was dismissed as "unfit" after slogging away in unforgiving heat.

The paceman has bristled at the accusation and Lawson said his reaction was justified, saying Bollinger was treated harshly and deserves to be judged on his efforts for the Blues when the selectors meet to pick the team to play the West Indies in Hobart.

"He was stopped from playing in the Shield game before that Test," said Lawson of Adelaide, 2010. "Two games before that he knocked over Ricky Ponting. I was here watching and it was superb but [Cricket Australia]  wouldn't let him play the next game.

"And then they picked him for Adelaide, where it was 45 degrees and the finger was pointed at Doug. I thought it was very harsh, a few people should've carried the can for that because it wasn't fair [on Bollinger].

"It's a different selection panel to back then and a captain who knows what Doug's capable of. He was on standby for a Test last year and he's bowling better now [than then] so he must be a chance."

NSW spin bowler Stephen O'Keefe spoke highly of the authority and determination Bollinger provides the Blues.

"Every time he has the ball in hand he's giving 100 per cent," said O'Keefe. "He puts his heart on his sleeve, he runs in, he hits the wicket hard and when he gets it right he's as good as any left-armer in the world.

"We're getting the best out of Doug, he's hit the season fresh and he's bowling that 140km/h. He's swinging it, he's really good with an old ball and in the sheds he offers some reasonable banter and that keeps it light-hearted. He's a character we love having around and it's good to see him chalking up 140 km."

One new Bollinger fan is the Sydney Roosters NRL team's sprint coach, Hayden Knowles, who expressed a respect for all fast bowlers after studying Bollinger's physical effort in the first innings of the Sheffield Shield match against Queensland.

"If you're monitoring Doug's total distance like we would a [Roosters] training session you add his 40m run-in to bowl and the 40m he walks back to his mark, so that comes to 80m," said Knowles. "When you times that by the 157 balls he bowled [there was one no ball that needed to be bowled again] he's doing well over 12 kilometres.

"At the Roosters our sports science and physical staff may plan for a 4km day, a 6km day or 8km day – and that's total distance – and they value the quality of the movements and the sprints.

"The quality of movement I saw from Doug for each and every ball I watched was very impressive and his total distance adds up to more than an NRL team does in a pre-season training session.

"Obviously [bowling] lasts longer because it's spread out over a day ...  the NRL guys could travel that distance in an hour and a half training session ...  but from realising what fast bowlers do by watching Doug Bollinger you have to respect them."