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.

7. Tevita Tatola

Tevita Tatola has been good for so long but in 2022 he was great. He dominated the Roosters, Sharks and Panthers (in his first stint) in the Finals following a near-flawless regular season.

136 metres run per game, 693 tackles at 95.4%, 1472 post-contact metres and 53 tackle breaks makes for pretty reading. He also crossed for four tries.

That average would have been higher if not for a one-minute game vs the Raiders due to injury. You can probably add another six tackle breaks to his total there also.

Souths very rarely lost that forward battle early. Tatola was often rushed back into the action when opposition forwards took momentum after he was given a rest.

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