One of my favourite aspects of every new season are the seeing which players will make their debut and hit the ground running.
Last year we saw Jacob Preston provide hope to an entire fanbase.
We saw Sunia Turuva emerge as the Rookie of the Year after being called in to replace Tyrone May after a season-ending injury looked like it may weaken the Penrith backline.
Jahream Bula showed signs of possessing talent that could be a major contributing factor in his side finally ending a decade long finals drought.
Who will step up in 2024 and provide similar stories?
Below is a look at 10 rookies I would certainly be keeping an eye on in 2024.
Of course I can't name all the players I believe will mak their debut. Nor can I promise the ten below even will. They're just players I expect to make a big impact, one way or another in the coming season.
Please note: To qualify for this list you need to have played five games or less in the top grade. So the likes of Tallis Duncan and Tom Jenkins won't appear.
Super League players won't be considered, if they've played more than five games in the Super League.
With that said, below are ten of the best rookies to look out for in 2024:
6. Samuela Fainu (Wests Tigers)
There's a reason the Tigers worked so hard to nab Samuela and his brother Latu from the Sea Eagles.
Latu will probably spend the season in NSW Cup. He is only 18 year's of age but arguably one of the best prospects on this list.
Samuela will plenty of First Grade in 2024. He is a big boy and arrives with five NRL appearances already to his name.
At only 20 year's of age, Fainu is a tremendous prospect. Hopefully the Tigers make him a big part of their build for the future because he has all the talent.
I cannot stress enough how NRL ready this kid is. Expect his early season efforts to have Tigers fans sporting big smiles.
