It's time for the second part of my top sixty players in Super League 2020, this time looking at positions 30-6. If you missed part one, you can find it here. On with the countdown...
30) LUKE GALE
I was unsure about Luke Gale's move to Leeds. I wondered whether his injury troubles in recent years might have meant Leeds were flogging a dead horse, but this has not been the case at all. After a tricky start, Gale has been very good for the Rhinos. The 32-year-old has four tries and eleven assists from his half-back role, which is very good. He hasn't quite been at the level which saw him win the 2017 Man of Steel but he's more than repaid Leeds' faith in him.
29) OLIVER GILDART
2019 Ranking: 15th
Injuries have limited Gildart to just nine appearances in 2020, but he has shown why he is arguably the best centre in the league on ability. Four tries and three assists in such a small number of games displays his quality. I think he is such a great ball-player and always shows quick hands when moving the ball wide. He was unlucky to be on the losing side in the Grand Final after playing most of the match with a broken thumb, too.
28) TOM DAVIES
It was very difficult for me not to include Tom Davies in my Super League Dream Team. The 23-year-old winger has been a great signing from Wigan, scoring thirteen tries in ten matches for Catalans this year. Such an excellent return displays how dangerous he has been out wide for the Dragons, who have had sparkling attacking structure this season, but you need players to finish it off, and that is what Davies has done time and time again.
27) JAKE CONNOR
2019 Ranking: 31st
A player that, if he added consistency to his game, would be a world-beater. He was given the number six shirt for the season and did start the season in the halves, but much of his best form actually came at full-back after Jamie Shaul's injury. I like him at full-back, it gives him a chance to get his hands on the ball a lot and influence things. Fourteen assists in as many matches shows his creative involvement for FC, and interestingly, he is one of only two players to have kicked more than one 40/20.
26) LIAM WATTS
2019 Ranking: 5th
A 2019 Man of Steel nominee, Watts' 2020 has been significantly affected by injuries. Only nine appearances in the season but he has still managed to make the top ten offloaders list, such is his ability to get the ball away. A brilliant prop who Castleford have badly missed at times this season. Extremely consistent and reliable. They need him fit and firing for all of 2021 to improve on their disappointing campaign.
25) KELEPI TANGINOA
2019 Ranking: 41st
Without a doubt Wakefield's star player this year, Kelepi Tanginoa has shown up every time he has played and put in consistently respectable performances. He has appeared in every Wakefield match in 2020 and has been an immense performer. Six tries isn't at all bad for a second rower, and his count of 1901 metres for the season will have been a big factor in the Australian making the official Super League Dream Team.
2019 Ranking: 11th
A player who was having an incredible season until injury curtailed his year. Evalds was operating at a magnificent level, getting nine tries and nine assists in just eleven appearances for Salford, form that would've seen him challenge for the golden boot and a place in the Dream Team. The 27-year-old Englishman is so good at arriving into the line from full-back and exploiting gaps and will be a huge miss for Salford when he joins Castleford in 2021.
23) KRISNAN INU
2019 Placing: 33rd
The man who was named on the left-wing in the official Super League Dream Team, Inu has been exceptional for Salford in 2020. The winger was Salford's top scorer with ten tries, despite not coming into the team until after restart in August. He also kicked 32 goals and missed just three, making him the most successful goal-kicker in the competition. A player who was always able to make things happen near the line this season.
22) JAMES BENTLEY
By a distance the most impressive young player in the league for me. Bentley has made the step up from bench player to starting second rower for the champions this year and it has been a seamless transition. His performance in the Grand Final was outstanding, making over 60 tackles and contributing to Saints' world-class defensive performance. Bentley is only 23 but looks like a player with decades of experience.
21) JOSH GRIFFIN
2019 Placing: 30th
One of the most dangerous runners in the league, Josh Griffin has been marvellous for a struggling Hull FC in 2020. Five tries and six assists from fourteen appearances show what a threatening centre Griffin is, and the 30-year-old's strength and power have been hallmarks of his game this year, with 61 tackle busts and 13 clean breaks. A really good player to watch as he is a throwback to rugby league players of old - big and difficult to stop.
20) MICHAEL LAWRENCE
The 30-year-old Huddersfield loose forward is the first entrant into the top 20 after a very good campaign for the Giants. He has been one of the unsung heroes of Super League in 2020 - he doesn't have a try involvement to his name and you probably can't remember any special moments he has produced - but he is the top tackler in the competition this year with 749 tackles. A real workhorse.
19) CARLOS TUIMIVAVE
Hull FC's best player in 2020 has been, without a doubt, Carlos Tuimivave. The centre has been in insatiable form for the Black and Whites, with six tries and four assists in just fifteen games. The 28-year-old is a superb handler of the ball and has shown great skill to find key passes on a number of occasions. Tuimivave's metre-making is brilliant - averaging 9.15 metres per carry, and making 68 tackle busts. He has also had the versatility to play in the halves at the end of the season after Albert Kelly's departure.
18) ASH HANDLEY
2019 Ranking: 32nd
Super League's golden boot winner in 2020 comes home in 18th place here. The Leeds winger has scored fourteen tries and at 24, is one of the younger golden boot winners. As well as finishing off so many of Leeds' attacks, he has shown plenty of creativity, selflessness and awareness to register five assists as well. The Leeds man has also been Super League's top metre-maker, with 2541. A magnificent season which stands him in good stead heading into World Cup year.
17) ZAK HARDAKER
2019 Ranking: 10th
If 2019 was his redemption year, then 2020 was the year that Zak Hardaker reminded us of what a quality rugby league player he is. The 29-year-old knows that he is in last chance saloon after his misdemeanours in 2017, and he is delivering on the faith Wigan have showed in him. Adrian Lam made the big decision to move Hardaker out of his favoured full-back role in order to fit Bevan French in there, which meant a move to centre for the Englishman. It is not a role that he would've wanted to play, but he has done a great job of it, making 1601 metres, four tries and five assists and 67 tackle busts. One of the best defensive players in the competition.
16) ISRAEL FOLAU
A player who has adapted well to Super League in his first season in the competition. The vastly experienced centre has enjoyed a stunning debut campaign for Catalans Dragons, bringing a major injection of quality to the Dragons' team. With four tries and seven assists in eleven appearances, he is operating at a try contribution every match. Steve McNamara's men have been scintillating in attack in 2020, and Folau's ability has been a big factor in that.
15) TOBY KING
One of the most improved players in the whole competition this year has been Warrington's Toby King, who has added a great degree of both quality and consistency to his game. The centre has become one of Warrington's star players in 2020. His defence has improved dramatically and he has largely been error-free, but it is in his attack that his rise has been most noticeable. King has been a huge part of Wire's new-found ability to score tries from deep, and his pass selection, ability to draw his man, and send someone into a gap on the inside or outside have become hallmarks of his game. Ten assists and two tries.
14) DARYL CLARK
2019 Ranking: 3rd
Wire's number nine wasn't quite at his sparkling best in 2020, but is still arguably Warrington's most important player and has had another good campaign. The 27-year-old's distribution of the ball is exceptional and he brings so much pace and energy to the game with his speed of passing. Four tries and six assists for the hooker, who has the most runs from dummy half in the whole of the league with 101. An NRL-standard player.
13) STEFAN RATCHFORD
2019 Ranking: 58th
One of Ratchford's best seasons at Warrington. He started the season in the halves, before returning to his regular role at full-back, then having a game at centre, before going back to full-back, having a stint at loose forward, moving to the halves again, and finishing at full-back. The ultimate rugby league player. Remarkably consistent and a great reader of the game, Ratchford has been terrific in defence and also a key component in attack, with a wonderful range of passing which has been enough to unlock defences on a number of occasions this season.
12) PAUL MCSHANE
This year's surprise Man of Steel winner just misses out on a place in the top ten here. McShane enjoyed a great start to the season as Castleford begun 2020 on fire, defeating St Helens in the final game before the season was paused. McShane's quick and accurate distribution was causing all manner of problems for the opposition, as were his well-timed runs from dummy-half. Eight assists is a good figure, and with a monster average gain of 9.53 metres, his runs are making up plenty of ground for the Tigers. His form tailed off in the second half of the season but he still ended 2020 with great stats in attack and defence - 604 tackles an indicator of his qualities without the ball.
11) JAMES ROBY
2019 Ranking: 18th
When James Roby retires, it is very possible that he will be considered as the greatest ever Super League player. The man is just an absolute legend and continues to perform at an extremely high level. He may be 35 now, but he is still one of St Helens' most important players. His ability to speed up the ruck and the pace of the passing brings so much to the St Helens attack - two tries and eight assists in just fourteen appearances! The Englishman, who has just completed his seventeenth season for the Saints and does so having made up 9.5 metres per carry.
10) MIKE COOPER
2019 Ranking: 38th
A Dream Team member in 2020, Mike Cooper has had an outstanding year for his boyhood club Warrington. The 32-year-old has raised his game this season and has been a model of consistency. So much of Wire's attack is based on offloads and Cooper is Super League's second-highest offloader, getting the ball away 37 times. Cooper's durability has also impressed, completing the full 80 minutes on five occasions. The prop is a marvellous forward and a major part of Warrington - look at how they struggled without him in the playoff exit to Hull FC.
9) SAM POWELL
It's a surprise for me that Sam Powell has been the best hooker in Super League this season. The Wigan man has enjoyed arguably his best season to date for the Warriors as they came oh-so-close to being crowned champions. With 705 tackles, Powell is the second-highest tackler in the competition. The Englishman has also been a huge threat from dummy-half this season, with eleven tries, which is absolutely exceptional for a hooker.
8) SAM TOMKINS
2019 Ranking: 57th
Sam Tomkins is a real mercurial rugby league player. His talent and skill level have been unbelievable for more than a decade in Super League, and 2020 has been no different, with the Wiganer putting in some sensational performances in his second season at the Catalans Dragons. It's five tries for the full-back this season, three of which came in a world-class performance against Castleford, but most impressive has been his support play - eleven assists as he has often been the one to provide the moment of quality or the key pass in the Dragons' attacking structure.
7) JONNY LOMAX
2019 Ranking: 1st
Last year's winner just misses out on a place in the top five, but crucially ends the year with another Super League crown. He hasn't been quite as prolific in front of the tryline, with just three scores of his own, but once again, Lomax's support play has been arguably the best in the league, with 21 assists, the most of any player in 2020. His passing range and accuracy is just frightening at times and the 30-year-old has still managed to be a major contributor to tries despite his team adopting a more conservative and less fluid approach to rugby.
6) JACKSON HASTINGS
2019 Ranking: 2nd
Our final entrant in part two is Wigan's major signing for 2020 and the 2019 Man of Steel, Jackson Hastings. The Australian half-back may have gone under the radar compared to his Salford days, but he has performed brilliantly, and arguably even better, in his first year at the Warriors. Nine tries and eighteen assists for Hastings means that he has more try contributions than any other player in the competition, which shows what a player he has been for Wigan. He has also shown his versatility, playing at hooker when needed and doing a great job.
Part Three at the weekend!
@ALooseWire
No comments:
Post a Comment