The kids are killing it in the NRL this year. It would be easier to stop Payne Haas on a surge towards the try-line than stop him from winning Rookie of the Year. He was joined in Origin by another babyface, David Fifita.
Bronson Xerri is still 18 but already a jet. You can’t have missed the spectacular efforts by flying teenage backs Jason Saab and Dylan Brown, and the Storm’s Tino Fa'asuamaleaui has only needed one outing to become hot property.
But the glow of these shiny new stars should not distract us from appreciating a vintage crop of veterans. The 10 oldest players in the league will not be around forever (with the obvious exception of Cameron Smith, likely to still be playing when Halley’s Comet next puts in an appearance) and we should enjoy this bunch of quirky individuals while we can.
Michael Gordon
The lowest-profile of the elderly brigade, Gordon’s outings for the troubled Titans this season have seen him in reasonable attacking form. While he was absent for nine rounds with a nasty blood clot, his teammates’ defensive haemorrhaging could not be stopped with a field dressing the size of Jupiters Casino. With AJ Brimson staking his claim as the club’s long-term custodian, it would be surprising to see Gordon saddle up for another year in the big league – but he has been written off before and made the naysayers look stupid, so we will just leave him in the ‘very probably most unlikely to continue’ column.
“This year the Cronulla captain became the player with the most losses in history”
Priceless, where is Ronnie when you need him ?