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Tom Trbojevic, Ashley Taylor, Gideon Gela-Mosby: Seven craziest stats from the Under 20s

THE Under 20s is famous for throwing up goofy records and we’ve dug out seven stats from the 2015 season that need to be seen to be believed.

Manly v Canberra
Manly v Canberra

WITH the quicker ruck speed, smaller players and somewhat lackadaisical defence at times, the Under 20s has long been a haven for the stats obsessed.

While the NRL might have higher quality play, the varying levels of talent from team to team and player to player mean that the Holden Cup can occasionally throw up the sort of numbers that would break the internet if they happened in the big leagues.

With that in mind, we’ve accumulated the seven craziest stats from the Under 20s this season and compared them to some NRL records.

Ashley Taylor - Brisbane Broncos

A front runner for the Under 20s player of the year award, Taylor is off to the Titans in 2016 and if his 2015 form is anything to go by the Gold Coast have landed themselves a beauty. Taylor leads the Under 20s in try assists and had an incredible six of them in Brisbane’s 40-24 Round 19 win over the Tigers. In a measure of Taylor’s dominance that day, the NRL record for try assists in a single match is also six, from Daly Cherry-Evans against Canberra in 2014 and Cooper Cronk against the Cowboys in 2012.

Jai Arrow - Brisbane Broncos

It’s rare that Under 20s numbers can be instantly replicated in first grade but if Jai Arrow could somehow make the transition he would instantly become a Super Coach stud on the level of Corey Parker. In a Broncos that has excelled throughout the season, Arrow has consistently put up excellent numbers and currently leads the competition in hit ups, has the second most offloads and leads all forwards in terms of metres gained. All told, he averages 16 hit ups for 157 metres per match and 29 tackles. Throw in the offloads, an occasional line break and six tries and you’ve got a pretty superb SuperCoach package.

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Addison Demetriou - Manly Sea Eagles

Switching from prop to centre has been the dream of many big men over the years, but when Addison Demetriou made the change earlier this season he immediately started bending the possibilities for Manly’s Under 20s side. His debut out wide was against the Tigers in Round 15 and he was an immediate success, running for 299 metres, scoring two tries, setting up another and breaking an amazing 26 tackles. For some context, the NRL record for broken tackles in a single match is 19, jointly held by Greg Inglis against the Raiders and Jarryd Hayne against the Broncos in 2007. Demetriou has remained a steady metre eater and has become near impossible to stop since (he leads the league in tackle breaks by a comfortable margin) but has yet to top his first day as a back.

Villiame Kikau - North Queensland Cowboys

You know what props are doing when they’re not thinking about playing in the centres? They’re thinking about themselves scoring tries. Most front rowers set the bar at one per season, but Cowboys prop Villiame Kikau is breaking all the rules and going on an historic try scoring tear for the North Queensland juggernaut. The big Fijian has barrelled over for 20 tries in 20 matches to sit equal third on the league’s list of top four pointers. Kikau’s haul eclipses the senior record for tries in a season by a front rower, which is jointly held at 11 by Harry Eden and Jack Holland in seasons 1975 and 1950 respectively. Just for laughs, Kikau has even scored two hat-tricks in 2015, against the Roosters in the season opener and against the Dragons in Round 17.

Tom Trbojevic - Manly Sea Eagles

Trbojevic’s dominance of the Under 20s has been well known this season after footage of him tearing up the Warriors went viral earlier this season. In that same match, Trbojevic gained an incredible 486 metres from 22 carries, meaning he ran almost half a kilometre with ball in hand, which towers over the NRL record of 346, set by Justin Hodges in Round 23 2006 against the Storm. Trbojevic also smashed together another four try haul against the Eels in Round 1 and a hat-trick and two try assists against the Storm in Round 2 and matched another NRL record in Round 22 when the Sea Eagles beat the Raiders 46-18. Despite grabbing just one try, Trbojevic was credited with six line breaks, which ties Anthony Minichiello and Nigel Roy’s senior record.

Kayln Ponga - North Queensland Cowboys

Demetriou might reign unchallenged as king of the tackle busts but multi-sport phenom Kalyn Ponga bears a mention for his explosive displays since coming into the Cowboys team midway through the season. Still only 17, Ponga has slotted in at fullback and made an immediate impact with his finest display coming against the Warriors in Round 24. Ponga scored a try in the 24-10 win to go with five line breaks, 327 metres gained and 22 tackle busts. Chased by a number of AFL, Rugby union and NRL clubs, Ponga has quickly established himself as one of the league’s brightest young stars.

Gideon Mosby-Gela - North Queensland Cowboys

A third Cowboys might seem like a little much, but the form of Gideon Mosby-Gela definitely bears repeating. The speedy winger has gone on a historic tear this year, smashing the competition record for tries in a season by crossing for 33 in just 22 matches. Having already surpassed Jake Mullaney’s competition record of 31 tries in a season, Mosby-Gela can now set his sights on Dave Brown’s first grade record of 38 tries in a season. Brown went on his scoring spree in 1935, scoring his 38 tries in a mere 17 matches, a pace that not even Mosby-Gela could keep up with. Mosby-Gela also leads the competition in line breaks and running metres and has scored four tries in three different matches this season.

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Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/teams/tom-trbojevic-ashley-taylor-gideon-gelamosby-seven-craziest-stats-from-the-under-20s/news-story/aa9e7b066a7f5186e353c85c5b766c0f