Why the Tom Bradys of the NRL are dominating this season

Like many rugby league players, Daly Cherry-Evans is infatuated with the NFL.

He watches matches when he can and has fantasy teams, but what the Manly playmaker largely draws from the sport is a greater understanding about himself and his longevity in his own code.

Last week, the Sea Eagles captain completed the absorbing 10-part docuseries Man in the Arena, which chronicles the career of the game’s greatest quarterback, Tom Brady.

“If there’s anything that reassured me from watching it, it was just to keep competing, keep trying to get better, keep finding ways to improve,” Cherry-Evans says. “But mostly just realise that game day is the best day of your week.”

Manly captain Daly Cherry-Evans is getting better with age

Much like Brady, who finally retired this year at the age of 45 after 23 seasons having won seven Super Bowls, Cherry-Evans is playing his best football in the twilight of his career.

As the Sea Eagles sliced and diced Cronulla in the first half last Sunday, Phil Gould said in commentary for Channel Nine that his deft display of passing, kicking and footwork at the line was evidence that Cherry-Evans had “mastered his trade”.

The man himself breaks into laughter when I mention this, before adding: “That’s nice of him, but I wouldn’t say I’ve mastered it. I’ve just come to realise what a good game looks like for me. That’s competing on every play, not the flashy plays I was known for earlier in my career. That comes with time; from making a lot of mistakes and education from my coaches and teammates. Through those failures and lessons, you find out what your strengths and weaknesses are. I wouldn’t say I’ve mastered anything. If anything, I’m just trying to master how good I can be.”

Nevertheless, in a game that’s getting quicker by the season, and requires greater athleticism than ever before, it’s curious that most of the NRL’s leading halfbacks are well into their 30s, which is usually the age when players slow down and eye one last payday in Super League.

Dragons half Ben Hunt is another playmaker ageing like fine wine.Credit: Getty

Cherry-Evans, 34, reaches the magical 300-match milestone when his side meet St George Illawarra at WIN Stadium on Saturday. Waiting for him will be his good friend, Dragons halfback Ben Hunt, 33, who is getting better the older he gets.

Meanwhile, Warriors halfback Shaun Johnson, 32, has never played so consistently — and that includes his breakout season in 2014 when he won the Golden Boot as the world’s best player.

Then there’s the Broncos’ 33-year-old halfback, captain and on-field coach, Adam Reynolds.

Most people move from Sydney to Queensland to retire and laze around the pool in dubious-sized Speedos with a tanning tray under their chins. Reynolds’ move from his beloved South Sydney to the Broncos has become a glorious second act. According to Cooper Cronk, who also got better with age, Reynolds is the “smartest player in the NRL”.

Playmakers often talk about the game slowing down the older they get because they’ve lived and breathed every scenario imaginable. “You understand what plays suit you,” Immortal Andrew Johns offers. “It just becomes habit, and you just fall into those habits.”

That’s certainly the case for Reynolds. “I’ve seen shapes thousands of times,” he says. “I know what to look for in defences. I know what triggers to look for. What shapes to look for when I need the ball and when I don’t. In that sense, the game does slow down and you see it a lot clearer.”

Reynolds appears to have an extra second or so up his sleeve whenever he takes on the defensive line this season.

Consider the round 20 match against the Bulldogs at Belmore Sportsground. Late in the first half, he ran at the line and looked certain to pass short to back-rower Brendan Piakura. Instead, he flicked his wrists and shifted wide, hitting fullback Tristan Sailor, who then put Deine Mariner over in the corner.

It was so subtle — a former player highlighted it to me for this piece — but typical of the plays Reynolds has been producing.

“I was just mixing it around with different options,” Reynolds explains. “You can wave the ball around and see if the defenders are jamming in or sliding. There are times when you play early to give your outside men some space, but you try to work out teams in the early minutes of the game, whether you hit short or look at what the three-in [defender] is doing. You see where the pressure is coming from and where there’s space. It’s a little game of chess out there, trying to be one step ahead of the defence and you do that through deception.”

After leading the Broncos to a 36-20 victory over Souths last Friday night, one of the club’s social media experts made a video for Reynolds’ Instagram account. It showed former New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman barking at Brady during a match in 2019. “You’re too f---in’ old!” Edelman yells, clearly mocking Brady’s critics. “You’re too old!”

Broncos captain Adam Reynolds is having a glorious second act.Credit: Getty

Reynolds insists it wasn’t directed at the Rabbitohs, whom he left in 2021 after being offered a one-year extension. “There was nothing behind that,” he says. “The Broncos boys just like to remind me of my age.”

Still, he’s taken the lead of Brady about being smarter about his body as he gets older. Brady credited his notoriously strict diet and reliance on alternative medicine and holistic wellness techniques for his longevity.

Reynolds mightn’t be as obsessive but understands the importance of nurturing his body and mind. “The older you get, the more you invest in your body,” he says. “Coming up here [to Brisbane], I knew I had to be much better with my preparation. I bought a sauna, have a pool at the house, and I concentrate on the recovery side of things. But I also get away from the game when I can.”

For Johnson, his renaissance is more about playing tougher than smarter. Warriors coach Andrew Webster earlier this week highlighted a cut to the halfback’s head suffered in the golden-point victory over Canberra, sealed by a Johnson field goal.

“He’s putting his head where he normally wouldn’t,” Webster told Fox Sports. “That was the first claret he’s had across the brow and the first time he’s had tape across the head. He still has that attacking flair — he can pull a team apart — but when he speaks to the team about what he wants from them, they respect him because he’s willing to do the hard stuff this year.”

Warriors legend and assistant coach Stacey Jones has been working closely with Johnson this season. “For me, Shaun’s edge defence has been outstanding,” he says. “For most halfbacks, that’s where they usually struggle. There’s been a massive improvement with his defence, which gives him confidence.”

The evergreen Shaun Johnson celebrates his winning field goal against Canberra last week.Credit: Getty

The game also slowed down for Jones when he reached his 30s. “And I see that in Shaun,” Jones continues. “He’s lost a bit of pace, but it certainly doesn’t show. I remember him when he was a youngster coming through; he’s so much clearer on the game now. The way he delivers messages to the group, whether it’s before the game or halftime, you just listen to it and go, ‘Wow, that’s a guy who knows what he’s doing.’”

Just as Johnson’s game has changed, so has Cherry-Evans’. He admits he made the mistake early into his career of comparing himself to others, despite winning a premiership with Manly in his rookie season in 2011.

The upswing in his form in recent seasons can be directly attributed to what he’s achieved playing State of Origin for Queensland. After being considered an outcast for several years, he became the first-choice halfback and made captain. It has undeniably become his team. The result: three series wins on his watch.

“It’s impossible to not learn while playing Origin,” he says. “I was a very instinctual player at the start. I backed my ability to come up with something in every game. Now there’s a lot more thought in the way I play. Origin has given me an opportunity to learn more. Playing with the best in the game makes it so hard not to learn. Everyone has all these ideas and you take bits and pieces along the way. The more exposure you have to those sides makes it impossible not to get better.”

It’s fitting that Cherry-Evans plays his 300th against Hunt, who has also gained confidence from his deeds for Queensland.

Perhaps the greatest indication of Hunt’s value is how he continues to play strongly for a team for whom he doesn’t want to play, having asked for a release earlier in the year. In other words, he refuses to let his standards drop along with his bottom lip.

“I’ve been on the phone to him,” Cherry-Evans smiles. “Hopefully, he’ll have a quiet night. You talk about competitiveness: he won’t be giving me a free pass in my 300th.”

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