It is very, very difficult to win a competition without a truly elite five-eighth. We certainly saw the cream rise to the top comes the finals.

That seems like an obvious statement, but getting the spine right in modern Rugby League is paramount.

In 2022, we saw a series of world-class five-eight performances. While I believe there is a clear number one in the position, grading the next nine was very, very difficult.

Here are the Top ten five-eighths from 2022. Again, this doesn't necessarily mean they are the best in the position, with performances in 2022 the only factor.

For a player to qualify, he must have played more games in the six than in any other position this season.

6. Cody Walker

Cody Walker is another on the list who was hard to grade. I saw some say he had a "down season" but his stats and late performances suggest otherwise.

14 tries, 21 try assists, 21 line break assists, 10 forced drop outs, 160 metres kicked per game, 73 metres run per game prove he far from relied on Adam Reynolds.

Given a rookie halves partner probably contributed to Walker's relatively slow start to the season but by the Semi Finals he was once again amongst the elite.

There were worries that Walker's confidence and performances would be down after the Grand Final but overall he proved that to be totally false.