The three-peat was achieved by the Penrith Panthers in 2023, in one of the most tightly-contested competitions of the modern era.
The opening third of the season saw some incredibly close margins, with the dominant teams starting to open the gaps on their opponents towards the back end of the year.
The Dolphins won plenty of fans in their inaugural NRL year in a season that many would not have predicted to be as successful.
The Warriors were adopted as many fans' 'second-favourite' team, with many riding the 'Wahs Wave', feeling affection for the Shaun Johnson-led side that arguably endured the hardest journey in and out of the COVID-affected period.
The NRL set new records for viewership and attendance in 2023, and it was a year where so many teams were still mathematically in finals contention until the final few rounds.
There was a plethora of encounters that we had to consider when finalising our top ten games of the year. Did we get them right? Were there any matches that you would have included?
9. Round 16 - Cowboys vs Panthers: Field goal shootout and a golden try
Field goal shootouts can bring out the best and indeed the worst of this amazing sport.
This was hardly the best, but then turned into something thrilling in the final two minutes. Penrith, playing without their Origin stars in Townsville, looked to have the game well in hand at halftime after leading 20 points to 12 and then making a solid start to the second half.
It was tries to young gun Kulikefu Finefeuiaki and, well, not so young winger Kyle Feldt though that'd push the game to 22-all where it remained.
Into the final ten minutes, there were a number of missed field goal shots, before Chad Townsend sent the Cowboys ahead less than two minutes from fulltime. Jack Cogger managed to answer back in Penrith's next use of the ball to force golden point though.
The game then looked set to be a draw until a Scott Drinkwater try ensured the Cowboys picked up two points in a nail-biter.
