The trend of teams outperforming their pre-season expectations was one which defined the 2022 NRL season, and it’s clear to see in Part 3 of Zero Tackle’s Top 50 player countdown.
Moving to players 30 to 21 on the list, we see a number of faces who would never have been anywhere near a list such as this before, as well as a pair of players at the end of their first full season in the NRL.
Players from the Cowboys, Raiders, Eels, Rabbitohs and Eels feature in this instalment of the countdown.
Here are players 30 to 21 on the list.
Part 1 (50-41)
Part 2 (40-31)
30. Hudson Young (Canberra Raiders)
Young has been excellent for the Raiders this year, to the point his miss in the selection for the Australian Rugby League World Cup squad came as something of a surprise.
In a Canberra team who only really hit their stride during the second half of the season, Young was one of the few players who was able to lay down consistent performances all year long, running the ball hard, tackling well and being a near impossibility to stop at times with his footwork and offloading.
29. Junior Paulo (Parramatta Eels)
Paulo’s season will unfortunately be remembered by a quiet performance in the State of Origin arena and an equally poor night out during the grand final where he simply failed to get Parramatta on the front foot at any stage or show any type of dominance over his opposite numbers in James Fisher-Harris and Moses Leota.
The new Samoan Rugby League World Cup captain was simply outstanding outside of that though, and plenty of victories for the blue and gold can ultimately be put down to the performances of himself and front row pairing Reagan Campbell-Gillard, as well as interchange star Ryan Matterson.
28. Jeremiah Nanai (North Queensland Cowboys)
Nanai was a relative unknown quantity at the start of the season with just a few NRL games under his belt, but that can hardly be the case anymore.
The Cowboys’ second rower had a superb season, being picked for both Queensland and Australia after a tug of war with New Zealand broke out for his eligibility and allegiance.
He would ultimately wind up as one of the NRL’s top try-scorers with 17, adding almost 100 metres per game, and while his defence needs work, the sky is the limit for the New Zealand-born 19-year-old.
27. Ryan Matterson (Parramatta Eels)
Matterson’s season was something special.
He may not have started at a million miles an hour, but it was a switch into the middle third which wasn’t seen coming which served as a springboard for what ended up being an incredible season.
He would regularly play an hour unchanged off the bench for Parramatta and was a regular selection in our stats-based team of the week here on Zero Tackle, with his numbers ultimately reading 153 metres per game and almost 96 per cent on the tackle efficiency front.
Brad Arthur faces an intriguing decision for 2023 over whether to leave him in the middle or move him back to the edge as Isaiah Papali’i prepares to depart.
26. Reece Robson (North Queensland Cowboys)
Another Cowboys’ star who has grown significantly is Reece Robson, and he falls just short of the top half of the Top 50.
An incredible season saw him quickly become one of the best dummy halves in the competition, and there was speculation leading into Origin 3 that he could have even featured in that game for the Blues.
His defensive work was top rate, but it was his creativity in attack which really set him apart and gave the Cowboys a leg up on plenty of occasions throughout 2022.
25. Alex Johnston (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
The South Sydney winger is closing in fast on Ken Irvine’s once thought unbreakable try-scoring record on the back of another season where he led the league.
Some will suggest he doesn’t deserve his place on a list such as this given ‘all he does is score tries,’ but frankly, that is so far from the truth.
A strong defender, Johnston also averages plenty of metres with the ball in hand and is everything anyone would want in a modern-day winger.
24. Matt Burton (Canterbury Bulldogs)
Burton is the only Bulldog on this list at the end of the 2022 season, and with good reason.
The blue and white struggled enormously to capitalise on their pre-season promise of major improvement following a number of high-profile signings, but Burton was the one who really came good on that promise.
A strong kicking game, plenty of running and a creativity matched by few saw him spark the Bulldogs to life on a number of occasions, while he also made his New South Wales debut.
23. Jason Taumalolo (North Queensland Cowboys)
Jason Taumalolo has become an unstoppable force of nature over the years, and while that disappeared a little in 2021 as Todd Payten tried to figure out how to get the most out of his giant lock forward, that wasn’t the case this time around.
The Tongan captain was a pack leader for the Cowboys, standing up to his salary and providing on a consistent basis.
Averaging 156 metres per game, he also defended strongly and added tallies of 80 tackle breaks and 22 offloads in his 25 games.
22. Reagan Campbell-Gillard (Parramatta Eels)
While Paulo had a strong season for Parramatta, it was Reagan Campbell-Gillard who really was able to lead the way in the middle forward for the grand final qualifying forward pack.
He was regularly able to impress in big minutes, running for 150 metres per game, adding a number of tackle breaks and offloads, and being a constant presence at both ends of the park, showing just a little bit more consistency that Paulo, although like his front row partner, he fell away in the grand final.
21. Valentine Holmes (North Queensland Cowboys)
Holmes faced all sorts of questions coming into the 2022 season as he prepared for a move into the centres – a position he had never played before at the top level.
He excelled though, booking his spot in the Australian Rugby League World Cup squad and regularly being one of the Cowboys’ best in a team who shocked all to make the preliminary finals.
He has found his new position, and while he may feature on the wing for Australia, there is no question he will find his way back into the centres for Todd Payten’s side next year.
Full list so far
50. Murray Taulagi (North Queensland Cowboys)
49. Nelson Asofa-Solomona (Melbourne Storm)
48. Tevita Tatola (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
47. Addin Fonua-Blake (New Zealand Warriors)
46. Beau Fermor (Gold Coast Titans)
45. Siosifa Talakai (Cronulla Sharks)
44. Campbell Graham (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
43. David Klemmer (Newcastle Knights)
42. Joseph Suaalii (Sydney Roosters)
41. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui (Gold Coast Titans)
40. Cameron McInnes (Cronulla Sharks)
39. Corey Oates (Brisbane Broncos)
38. Josh Papalii (Canberra Raiders)
37. Payne Haas (Brisbane Broncos)
36. Tom Dearden (North Queensland Cowboys)
35. Haumole Olakau’atu (Manly Sea Eagles)
34. Shaun Lane (Parramatta Eels)
33. Jahrome Hughes (Melbourne Storm)
32. Clint Gutherson (Parramatta Eels)
31. Adam Reynolds (Brisbane Broncos)
30. Hudson Young (Canberra Raiders)
29. Junior Paulo (Parramatta Eels)
28. Jeremiah Nanai (North Queensland Cowboys)
27. Ryan Matterson (Parramatta Eels)
26. Reece Robson (North Queensland Cowboys)
25. Alex Johnston (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
24. Matt Burton (Canterbury Bulldogs)
23. Jason Taumalolo (North Queensland Cowboys)
22. Reagan Campbell-Gillard (Parramatta Eels)
21. Valentine Holmes (North Queensland Cowboys)
Source:: ZeroTackle
