Buzz Rothfield: How to pick the top 50 NRL players
BUZZ Rothfield names his long list of players which will be whittled down into the NRL’s top 50 and revealed on Thursday.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
PICKING my best 50 players in the NRL is an almost impossible assignment.
You weight up past form, statistics, potential and good old fashioned footy judgment.
The first thing I did was analyse the top 17 in each club’s roster and focus on those players that have the biggest impact week in and week out.
That’s the easy part. I finished up with 104 names.
What it does show is the incredible strength of the Penrith Panthers who managed 12 out of the 104 contenders and also why the Newcastle Knights, with only Dane Gagai making the list, will struggle.
You then look for the obvious top 10 candidates such as Johnathan Thurston and Cameron Smith. But along with rewarding sustained excellence over a number of seasons, there is a need to allow for some new blood. Of course that means, for every new face, one has to drop out.
Below is my long list of 50, we will be revealing 50 to 26 on Wednesday afternoon with the top 25 announced on Thursday, the opening day of the 2017 season.
‘A coach who cares’: Titans owner breaks silence on Hasler spray
Titans owner Rebecca Frizelle had a front-row seat to Des Hasler’s savage dressing-room tirade. Speaking for the first time since the incident, the boss has defended the coach’s epic spray, while also addressing the current state of the club.
Brailey, Sharks at odds over extension after double rejection
Blayke Brailey is in career-best form and is in the midst of contract talks with the Sharks. Find out why the local product has rejected Cronulla’s deal, and why they rejected his counter.