25 in 25: Best winger of NRL era - Morris, Foxx, Sailor, Hazem, Blacklock, Folau, Johnston, Tuqiri?

The 25th season of the NRL is done and dusted so to commemorate the first quarter-century of this instalment of the premiership, The Roar is looking back at the 25 best players and moments in 25 categories.

We have already gone through the best fullbacks, locks, players to never make Origin, coaches, captains, halfbacks, front-rowers, goal-kickers, recruits and Grand Final moments of the era.

It’s time to cast our gaze to the flanks to see which wingers have been the pick of the pacy bunch.

And even though a large chunk of a winger’s worth is getting the ball over the try line, defensive prowess (or lack thereof) is also a factor in assessing these speedsters. 

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Each player has been judged on their collective efforts from 1998 onwards, not including their efforts prior to that season, or if they’re an active player, up until 2022, without speculating on how their career might play out over next season and beyond.

The best of the best – the top 10

1 Brett Morris 
2 Josh Addo-Carr 
3 Wendell Sailor 
4 Hazem El Masri 
5 Nathan Blacklock 
6 Alex Johnston 
7 Timana Tahu 
8 Israel Folau 
9 Lote Tuqiri 
10 Matt Sing 

Wingers don’t traditionally last too long but it’s testament to Morris that he managed to play 16 seasons in the NRL and was still producing – 11 tries in seven games – when an ACL tear brought his final season in 2021 to a premature end. A tally of 176 tries in 276 matches doesn’t tell the full tale – he was a dynamic finisher, a sturdy defender and ultimate team man for St George Illawarra, Canterbury, the Roosters, NSW and Australia.

Brett Morris (Photo by Tony Feder/Getty Images)

As he does more often than not, Addo-Carr is rapidly closing the gap on Morris and could become one of the greatest wingers of all time. He has 118 tries from 150 NRL games, mainly at Melbourne, and is possibly the fastest player in premiership history. If he can keep performing into his 30s, the Foxx could overhaul Ken Irvine’s all-time tries record of 212.

Sailor is tough to judge – he was elite in the 1990s and, critiquing his time from the start of the NRL era, he was dominant for four years, then missed almost seven seasons in rugby before adding 17 tres in 33 games for the Dragons. If he’d have stayed in league, he’d likely be No.1.

El Masri was rarely given a look-in by Australia’s representative selectors but with 159 tries from 317 games among his 2418 career points, he was extremely effective for the Bulldogs, particularly in their 2004 charge to Grand Final glory.

Blacklock had four straight seasons with 20-plus tries from 1998-2001 and it was beyond comprehension why he was not given a decent crack at Origin by the NSW selectors despite also winning three straight Dally M winger of the year awards. He was a great finisher but no winger in the modern era has rivalled “Tingha” for his ability to bob up anywhere on the field to create a try out of nothing or capitalise on the smallest of attacking opportunities.

Johnston has been rising up the rankings in recent years with his try-scoring exploits on South Sydney’s left edge, now up to 166 tries from 191 appearances and in sight of Irvine’s historical benchmark. If his defence was sturdier, he probably would have played a lot more for Australia and been given a chance at Origin level for NSW but the soon-to-be 28-year-old has plenty of time to add to his already impressive resume.

Tahu was possibly the most athletically gifted of these wingers with his combination of size, speed and footwork but he only played 52 games on the flank before switching to centre when he left the Knights for the Eels. He scored 93 tries in just 126 games at Newcastle and is another winger who was able to become a dual international with the Wallabies. 

Folau’s rugby league career was phenomenal in his first four seasons before he went chasing more dollars in the AFL and international glory with the Wallabies. He was stellar for Queensland and Australia on the wing but only started 26 of his 91 NRL games at Melbourne and Brisbane on the flank as he piled up 73 tries along the way.

Tuqiri continues a theme among the modern wingers who dazzled in four seasons at the Broncos, still had one highly productive year in him when he returned from rugby to the Wests Tigers and won a premiership with Souths in 2014 in his swansong. He touched down 90 times in 167 outings, including 72 in his four-year prime stage of his career.

Sing was not the biggest winger but was definitely one of the quickest who could turn half-chances into four points, doing so 159 times in 275 matches at the Panthers, Roosters and Cowboys while adding 24 Origins for Queensland and 13 Tests to a lengthy career which lasted 14 seasons. 

Best of the rest – elite performers

11 Manu Vatuvei 
12 Suliasi Vunivalu 
13 Valentine Holmes 
14 Adam MacDougall 
15 Daniel Tupou 
16 Semi Radradra 
17 Jordan Rapana 
18 Blake Ferguson 
19 Akuila Uate 
20 Matt King 

Vatuvei was a “Beast” on the edge for the Warriors, New Zealand and a couple of times with Tonga, scoring 152 tries from 226 NRL games, as well as another 23 from 30 Tests.

Suliasi Vunivalu. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

Vunivalu’s strike rate of 86 tries from 111 games at Melbourne places him in elite company and it would not be a surprise if he also returns to league after a stint in union.

Holmes has found great success on the wing with Queensland and Australia and his early days at the Sharks but the Cowboys goal kicker has only spent 69 of his 161 NRL games there. 

MacDougall is another player who is remembered as a destructive winger but only started 59 games in that position and was used more as a centre, ending up with 92 tries from 195 games at Newcastle, Souths and the Roosters.

Tupou has used his height to great effect on the left edge for the Roosters, NSW and Tonga, a consistent rather than flashy presence for any team he represents.

Radradra falls in the shooting star category – in his four full seasons at Parramatta he scored 82 tries from just 94 games and was named Dally M winger of the year twice. 

(Photo by Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

Rapana has been a fierce competitor for the Raiders for the best part of a decade and with 94 tries from 180 NRL games, should tick over into the Century Club next season.

Ferguson was naturally talented but took a few years to become a consistent performer due to a variety of reasons but, particularly during his four-year stint which ended with the 2018 Grand Final win, he was a potent finisher and huge metre eater out of the backfield.

Uate is not given due credit in many quarters but the numbers don’t lie – 110 tries in 161 games for Newcastle, then another 19 from 39 in two years at Manly mean he was a top-notch tryscorer over his 11-year career.

King was a late bloomer who alternated between centre and wing and with 63 tries from 114 matches at Melbourne and Souths, as well as another eight from a combined 19 appearances for NSW and Australia, he knew his way to the try line.

The final five

21 Marcus Bai
22 Matt Geyer
23 Nathan Merritt
24 Josh Mansour 
25 Luke Burt

Bai and Geyer both gave the Storm solid service in lengthy careers, known more for their grunt work on kick returns and dummy-half runs than for being particularly flashy finishers. 

Merritt’s 154 tries suggest he could be ranked higher although he was targeted by opposition attacks which meant he was for the most part snubbed by selectors for higher honours. 

Mansour was all muscle and in his prime at Penrith could bust tackles from anywhere on the field while Burt was the consummate professional for Parramatta over many years and would not have looked out of place if he had been given a run by the representative selectors.

Just missed the cut

There were a few star players who started out on the wing but then made a name for themselves at fullback or centre like Jarryd Hayne, Anthony Minichiello, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Joel Monaghan and Will Hopoate.

Some wingers had steep career peaks or were only in the NRL for a few years like Brian Carney and Taniela Tuiaki or are still early in their careers like Reuben Garrick, Maika Sivo and Brian To’o. 

There were players who peaked prior to the NRL kicking off like Ken Nagas, Michael Hancock, John Hopoate and Jamie Ainscough while Mat Rogers only had three full seasons on the wing in this era before switching to the Wallabies then playing centre, five-eighth and fullback at the Titans.

Among the players who have 100 tries or more for their careers, you could make a case for Kyle Feldt (115), Jason Nightingale (110), Colin Best (109), Amos Roberts (106), David Simmons (103) and Ashley Graham (102).

Other wingers you could argue have strong credentials include Kiwi duo Ken Maumalo and Matt Utai, Penrith premiership winner Luke Rooney, Storm stalwart Anthony Quinn, Broncos pair Michael De Vere and Corey Oates, Wests Tigers speedsters David Nofoaluma and Pat Richards, and Eels enigma Eric Grothe jnr.