The 2026 NRL season is just around the corner, and final preparations are well underway around the competition.
The first teams are not all that far away, but for most clubs, the all-important spine is all but locked away.
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The fullback, five-eighth, halfback and hooker are the players who ultimately drive the team forward, set up the points and dictate the way footy is going to be played throughout the course of the season.
SEE ALSO: Every NRL forward pack ranked for 2026
There are important positions all over the park, but no team have won a competition without a strong spine.
Here are the rankings ahead of the 2026 campaign.
9. New Zealand Warriors
Likely first choice spine: Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Chanel Harris-Tavita, Luke Metcalf, Wayde Egan
Other options: Taine Tuaupiki, Te Maire Martin, Tanah Boyd, Jett Cleary, Samuel Healey
The Warriors come into the season with a real point to prove after their fadeout following Luke Metcalf's injury in 2025.
He will miss the first six weeks of the new year, but will return immediately as one of the game's best halfbacks. Add Wayde Egan into that spine and the nucleus is there.
The jury is still very much out on Chanel Harris-Tavita at six, while Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad is one of the game's best ball-runners, but probably needs to find another level to his creativity for the Warriors to be a real success.
I would not put the Roosters above the Storm or the Panthers because DCE hasn’t played 6 for years. Maybe the Roosters think two half-backs will work (like it does at Cronulla) but until we have seen how they actually function working together as a pair, I wouldn’t be saying that they are the best in the game.