With the off-seasis on comes the usual troupes.
Talk of expansion, the divisions talk, player movements and of course post-season rankings.
Today we're here to focus on the rankings. More specifically, the NRL bench specialists and their rankings from 2023.
Please keep in mind that these rankings are based only on 2023.
To qualify, a player must have played off the bench on a majority of appearances. They also cannot appear anywhere else in the rankings. i.e. Cam McInnes ranked in the top locks and thus won't be seen here.
Before we start, I'm going to take a moment to answer some of the usual questions to appear in the comments to any sort of rankings.
Do I even watch football? Yes, every game.
Are my eyes painted on? No. That would be funny though.
Who am I? Just a fan.
With that said, below are the top ten NRL bench specialists based purely and totally on 2023:
Honourable mentions: Wiremu Greig, Bronson Garlick, Emre Guler
4. Jarrod Wallace
I don't know what I was expecting but I can't believe Jarrod Wallace is 32.
It seems as though he has been around for 20 years whilst he also seems to be playing like someone in his early to mid 20s.
Wallace played a huge part, especially early on, in the Dolphins success in 2023.
Across his 19 games, 15 of which came via the bench, he crossed for three tries, ran for over 115 metres per game and tackled at almost 89%. He also broke 30 tackles and had an amazing 39 offloads. Big numbers.
Interesting, Dan
I’d have liked to see when each of these guys comes off contract.
I could look it up, but I’m just lazy !