The NRL’s introduction of the two-point field goal for successful kicks from beyond the 40-metre line was derided as one of the more pointless rule changes of recent times.
But despite the assumption that it would be a rarely-used commodity, we’ve already seen Adam Reynolds boot the first two-point field goal in Round 5 and Nathan Cleary slot a crucial deadlock-breaker a week later.
To celebrate the elusive art of the field goal, Will Evans from This Warriors Life ranks the best exponents of the NRL era in this week’s Zero Tackle Top 8.
Some the most clutch, sweet-striking field goal kickers of the modern era, including Shaun Johnson, Anthony Milford, and icon match-winners Johnathan Thurston and Andrew Johns, couldn’t squeeze into this list.
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And give Will's other Top 8 stories a read below!
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Miraculous comebacks of the NRL era
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Without further ado, here is this week's edition: field goal exponents.
4. James Maloney
One of the game’s pre-eminent match-winners of the past decade, Maloney’s ability to bisect the uprights with a drop goal was a key part of his clutch kitbag. He kicked 25 field goals in 247 NRL games for the Storm, Warriors, Roosters, Sharks and Panthers.
The most valuable one-pointer of his career came in the Roosters’ 31-30 win over the Cowboys in a 2014 semi-final epic, while he saved some of his best work for one of his former clubs. Maloney sunk the Warriors with golden point field goals for the Sharks (2016) and Panthers (2019).
