The prop forwards. Not a position that draws the attention of the halfback role, or even the modern-day fullback, but just as important.
They say that Origin is won in the forwards. It's hard to name a brilliant halfback who stars with any sort of consistency whilst playing behind a beaten forward pack.
In 2022 we are spoilt when it comes to middle forwards. The shortlist here was 18, without even deep diving for names that didn't come to mind right away.
Some super-performing props are going to miss out here, but here are the 10 props I believe performed best in 2022.
Only 2022 is taken into account. To qualify a player must have played more games in the front row than elsewhere. There may be some crossover with the lock position, but we'll cross that if and when we come to it.
1. Joseph Tapine
The Raiders bookend is now the game's elite prop thanks to one of the all-time great seasons in 2022.
Tapine's performance in the opening round of the Finals against the Storm was one of the most dominant middle efforts I can remember.
His 25 appearances in 2022 saw him cross for two tries, run for 165 metres per game, break 77 tackles and complete 731 tackles at 95.2% efficiency. He also ran up 1731 post contact metres.
He kicked off the season with a monster effort in the All-Star game and did not let up on the pedal across the entire year. I'm happy to double down on declaring he is the best prop in the game.
Personally, I would have dropped David Klemmer for Jordan McLean, but I can’t really grumble about that list.