There's no way Hunt should have started or been considered to be ahead of Slater as the #1 fullback and the season that Slater had- he was the #1 fullback in 2008 and, up until he ran blind, had had a great tournament.
Hunt is the third best fullback in the game at the moment- he's reliable, but doesn't offer what Slater does. He wouldn't have ran blind, therefore it is unlikely he would have made the same mistake Slater made- but then again, who would have dreamed the World Cup would have been so close?