I'd argue that the role of the winger has never been more important.
Fall from "catch and fall" merchants, wingers now play massive roles in not only scoring freakish tries, but helping out forwards by making mass metres.
Players such as Brian To'o have become extra forwards, routinely running for 150 metres, allowing their big men to use energy elsewhere.
Today we are looking at the top ten wing performers from 2024.
Just to clarify, this isn't a list of best wingers; it's the best performers in 2024.
Players who played across multiple positions will be considered as long as they played more wing than other spots.
With that said, below are the top ten wingers from 2024:
Honourable Mentions: Sunia Turuva and Sione Katoa
At times the Sharks ace played like one of the top three wingers in the game. At times he looked as though ... well, not so much.
Overall though he was far better than he was bad. His left edge combination with rookie Kayal Iro quickly because one of the most lethal in the competition.
He ran out 23 times in 2024 for the Sharks, scoring 18 tries, assisting seven, breaking 92 tackles, making 24 line-breaks and running for almost 150 metres per game.
Mulitalo had one of the all time great try assists when he took a short kick, broke multiple takes and put Sifa Talakai away to beat the Storm.
He'll want to cut out those errors, but ultimately, the Sharks left edge should hum in 2025.
The English giant arrived at Bondi with massive wraps and expectation and fair to say he lived up to most, if not all.
Across his 22 games he scored 20 times, broke 115 tackles, made 26 line-breaks and averaged just under 140 run metres per game.
He crossed for a double, made five line-breaks and ran for over 250 metres. He was borderline unstoppable that day.
Short drop outs becoming the norm have made Young even more dangerous.
Young put in a massive shift during the 2024 season and played a huge part in the Roosters piling on massive numbers of points.
If this was a list of wing performers vs pre-season expectations, Talau would top this list by a long, long way.
He arrived at Manly as a handy option out wide but quickly became one of the Sea Eagles main weapons out wide.
Across his 23 games, 15 of which came on the wing, he scored 18 tries, had five try assists, made 17 line-breaks and ran for 144 metres per game.
Overall, Talau can be over the moon about his efforts in 2024. As a result, he'll remain an important part of Anthony Seibold's setup next season.
Although Kiraz did make 11 of his 25 appearances this season in the centres, it was his efforts on the wing that made him one of the NRL's most damaging backline players in 2024.
His 189 run metres per game are skewed by games in the centres. While on the wing he routinely ran over 200 metres. That said, he did record over 300 whilst in the centres against the Storm.
In his 25 games in 2024, Kiraz recorded 11 tries, 111 tackle breaks, 18 line-breaks and the aforementioned 189 run metres per game.
Kiraz monster running game has seen him emerge as a very real candidate for an Origin wing spot moving forward.
I am convinced that Daniel Tupou has directions to the fountain of youth. Despite being 33 year's of age, he is still, very much, at the top of his game.
24 games for the Roosters this season saw him net 21 tries, six try assists, make 31 line-breaks, break 74 tackles and run for 168 metres per game.
Much like his club teammate Dom Young, the short dropout becoming the default made Tupou even more dangerous.
It looked as though Tupou may be headed to England but his brilliant 2024 season made it impossible for the Roosters to not offer him a crack to go around again next season.
Did you know that Will Warbrick won an Olympic silver medal in the Rugby Sevens? Just making sure ...
Fair to say that Warbrick has been one of those more than capable of making the code switch. He quickly became an elite winger in 2024.
Across 24 games for the Storm this year he crossed for 15 tries, broke 74 tackles, had 16 line-breaks and ran for over 160 metres per game.
I'd argue his efforts far surpassed those stats. He was massive in becoming yet another of Craig Bellamy's superstars.
Kyle Feldt is another who just refuses to age. At 32 year's of age the Cowboys hero was, again, huge on the wing for the Cowboys.
He ran out 25 times this season for 23 tries, 25 line-breaks, 70 tackle breaks and almost 165 metres run per game.
He crossed for his 151st try in 2024 and leaves the club as the Cowboys all-time leading try scorer.
Feldt has been a constant out wide for the Cowboys for the past 11 years. What a way to sign off!
The Titans speedster put in an almighty 2024 season. So much so that I almost put him ahead of one of the NSW Blues wingers on this list.
His 21 games for the Titans this year saw him cross for 24 tries, make 27 line-breaks and run for just under 120 metres per game.
The 22-year-old was a rare highlight in an otherwise less-than-stellar season for the Titans.
Expect huge things from the freakish flyer in 2025 and beyond.
If this list had been compiled just after the Origin series, Lomax is number one by a long, long way. He did have a slight fall-off late on and thus drifts all the way to the second spot.
With his career at a crossroads, Lomax was shifted to the wing and quickly became the elite, Origin-level superstar we all knew he could be.
21 games for the Dragons saw him score 14 tries, lay on five try assists, break 76 tackles, make 14 line-breaks and run for over 171 metres per game.
In a struggling Red V outfit, Lomax was an absolute monster! He should send Shane Flanagan Christmas cards for the rest of his career.
Another season, another Brian To'o masterclass. He is the ultimate modern-day winger and has overseen a change in the position.
His 24 games may have 'only' seen him cross for 14 tries but 196 run metres per game, 20 linebreaks and 154 tackle breaks are all massive stats.
To'o means so much to this Panthers outfit. His forwards work hard, but they're allowed to rest and trackback, knowing To'o will get them on the front foot early in sets.
There is a reason Penrith shot down a supposed request by To'o to shift to the Tigers. There simply isn't anyone else like him in the game.