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The six most powerful NRL players of the past 18 years: Part 2

20th September, 2017
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Gorden Tallis: one of the most powerful men to play in the NRL. (Photo by Jonathan Wood/Getty Images)
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20th September, 2017
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Recently, Rohan Smith and I counted down three of the six most powerful rugby league players of the past 18 years.

Shane Webcke, Paul Gallen and Adrian Morley smashed their way onto that list by best meeting these criteria:

  • Collision: the blunt force a player brings when they charge like a berserker into the opposition.
  • Speed: The speed at which the big unit propels himself into the fray.
  • Endurance: How long the big unit can keep doing it for during a game.
  • Longevity: how many seasons the behemoth played at the peak of his powers.
  • X-Factor: the ability of the large man to change the game.

In each of these categories, we graded them against the whole field, be that James Roberts for speed and Darren Lockyer for longevity.

So, who did we judge to be the three most powerful players in the NRL’s past 18 years?

There were a few unlucky players to miss out, the last ones cut when making this list. Honourable mentions must go to Steve Price, Andrew Fifitia and Jason Taumalolo, all of whom are (or were, in the case of Price) explosive players.

But there are only three spots left in this countdown, and they go to…

3. Sam Burgess

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The second Englishman on the list. The more I see of him the more I think Sam Burgess is slightly mad in a brilliant, powerful way. He plays the game with a slightly unbalanced and demonic ferocity that very few can match, let alone contain.

While he’s not the biggest of the Burgess boys, there is no question he’s the best. A dual international for England, Sam is a dynamic league player and has an impact in any game he plays.

Speed: 14/20
Rohan: Burgess can run. He has genuine leg speed for a heavy man. Listed at 116kg, he is seriously big but he is also very well balanced and can get moving quickly.

His leg speed is a benefit on both sides of the ball. He can accelerate quickly into collision carrying the ball, shoot out of the line for a big collision in defence and even chase people down in open spaces.

Collision: 18/20
Tim: Although I’d heard of him before his arrival in 2010, nothing could prepare us for the reality of Sam Burgess and his ability to smash the hell out of opponents.

His first game on Australian soil was the 2010 Indigenous All Stars game. He smashed Yileen Gordon so hard I was worried he wouldn’t get up. Though Gordon did eventually rise to his feet, he was able to play little part in the game from that point on. It was a magnificent hit and they’ve kept coming like that ever since. What a weapon.

Endurance: 18/20
Rohan: The ability to keep going is there in Burgess. He is a competitor that will just stay out there as long as the coach needs him to. He can do 80 minutes in the middle when needed and he needs no breaks when he plays on the edge.

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Tim: In regard to endurance, his performance in the 2014 grand final where he played the entire match with a badly broken cheekbone was incredible. He truly embodied the John Sattler example that day and was a worthy Clive Churchill medallist.

Rabbitohs players celebrates with the premiership trophy after winning the 2014 NRL Grand Final match between the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium in Sydney, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014. (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

(AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

Longevity: 14/20
Career span: 2006 – ??? (12 seasons and counting)
Super League/NRL: 207 games (119 NRL, 88 Super League)
Internationals: 19 (2 Great Britain, 17 England)
Rugby union: 27 games
Total: 253 Games

X-Factor: 15/20
Rohan: Sam Burgess has leg speed, size, collision, footwork at the line and he is a total competitor. The Englishman even has soft hands before the line and the ability to offload anytime he likes.

There are so many ways he can beat you. He will be a true legend of the game – if he isn’t already.

2. Gorden Tallis

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The ‘Raging Bull’ hit the game of rugby league in the early 1990s as a wild and incredibly aggressive Dragon. His full on passion to dominate often saw him fly off the handle. I’m not sure any player has been sin binned as much as Tallis was while he was at the Dragons.

By the time he joined the Broncos in 1997, he was one of the most dominant forwards in the game. Always one to wear his heart on his sleeve, Tallis was never boring.

Speed: 14/20
Rohan: Tallis was a true power athlete. He could genuinely run fast too. In his earlier days at the Dragons, they experimented with having two fullbacks ready to bring the ball back and he was one of them.

His leg speed into the collision was very fast. He then had the ability to go on with it post contact, smashing away like the raging bull he was called. He changed the way backrowers were judged. Athletically, he was ahead of his time.

Collision: 19/20
Tim: One of the very biggest collisions I have ever seen in the flesh took place on Sunday, May 13, 2001 at Canberra Stadium. The 110kg Broncos captain Gorden Tallis broke through the Raiders right side of defence about 40 metres out and was rampaging towards the try line.

The 112kg Kiwi Lesley ‘Volcano’ Vainikolo stood between him and the line. Tallis had no intention of putting on a step. The collision made the grandstand shake. While Vainikolo somehow managed to stop Tallis, the effort badly tore his pec. It was the last match he’d play for the Raiders.

Tallis, on the other hand, was fine.

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Endurance: 14/20
Rohan: Tallis was an explosive power athlete. His repeat ability wasn’t like that of Gallen. However, every coach, everywhere, wanted what Tallis brought to the team. His competitiveness was ferocious and he wanted to be nowhere else but on the field ripping in.

While he didn’t play the whole 80 minutes that often, he was definitely capable of it.

Brett Hodgson is tackled by Gorden Tallis

(Photo: Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)

Longevity: 15/20
Tallis’ game tally would have been significantly higher had he not sat out the 1996 ARL season rather than play for St George.

Career span: 1992 – 2004 (13 seasons)
NSWRL/ARL/Super League/NRL: 214 games
State of Origin: 23 (Queensland)
Internationals: 21 (Australia)
Total: 258 Games

X-Factor: 18/20
Tim: Tallis was a maniac on the field. He had a white line fever the likes of which I hadn’t seen before nor since. This rage saw him able to smash through the line when the game was on the line or make the crucial try saving tackle or put on a game saving play when it was needed.

In the 2002 State of Origin decider, his rag-dolling of Brett Hodgson over the touchline illustrated the raw and unbridle drive, determination and strength of the man.

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1. Sonny Bill Williams

I heard about Sonny Bill Williams long before I saw him. He was big, he was fast, he was strong and he hit like a runaway train. Although in and out of rugby league at his whim, when he is in he is a superstar. In 2013, while playing for the Roosters, he was named the RLIF player of the year. Hopefully, he returns for one last go in the NRL.

Speed: 18/20
Tim: Sonny Bill Williams was a very competitive sprinter while growing up in Auckland but he gave it up to play rugby league. However, he has never lost his speed. While not the very fastest in the game, he was always right up there.

Collision: 18/20
Tim: Now outlawed, the Sonny Bill Williams shoulder charge is the stuff of legend. His timing and accuracy was precise. His ability to lay opponents out with a brutal shot made his legend grow from the moment he hit first grade in 2004 with the Bulldogs.

On his return to league in 2013, he showed that he could still pound players brutally even when using his arms.

Endurance: 16/20
Rohan: What needs to get done, gets done. Sonny Bill Williams can manage his energy levels very well. Always an 80-minute edge player, Williams has the aerobic capacity and strength to compile higher tackle counts and carries than he did, but that wasn’t what he was there for.

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Sonny Bill Wiliiams during the NRL finals series between the Sydney Roosters and the Manly Sea Eagles at Allianz Stadium in Sydney, Saturday, Sep. 14, 2013. (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Renee McKay)

(AAP Image/Action Photographics, Renee McKay)

Longevity: 14/20
Career span: 2004 – (14 seasons and counting)
NRL: 118 games
Internationals: 12 (New Zealand)
Rugby union: 97 games
Internationals: 38 (New Zealand)
Total: 265 Games

X-Factor: 18/20
Rohan: If Sonny Bill Williams’ team were doing ok, he would just do his job. However, he can inject himself into the game with repeat efforts when the game needs to be changed.

He is very highly skilled, very athletic and clearly loves a collision. This guy is the closest to the complete package of an NRL player that I have seen, and there is more in him. If he was given more scope to roam, or play a more expansive style, he could be even more effective in the game of rugby league.

Tim: It’s the 59th minute of the 2013 NRL grand final, with the Roosters down by four. Sonny Bill Williams hits the line, drawing the defender, then pops the perfect offload to James Maloney. The end result was the try that put the Roosters into the lead, one they never lost.

What a pass. Commeth the hour, commeth Sonny Bill Williams.

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So who is your most powerful NRL player?

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