Ruddy Duck wrote:Correct, but trying telling it to those who have only started watching the game in more recent times.
You only have to watch some of the games on Wigan TV Match Archive to see how there was more creativity and skill by not just the odd two or three in a team, but most of a team which in many cases included top players at their peak from both the NRL like Brett Kenny, Mel Meninga, Gene Miles, Wally Lewis etc from the NRL and Billy Boston, Lewis Jones, Tom Van Vollenhoven, Jonathan Davies etc from Rugby Union.
Most of those players were playing at a time when the game was Semi Professional and in front of far bigger crowds and better atmospheres than what there is now.
As the song goes, things ain't what they used to be!
Through nostalgia, people cherry pick out the good moments in the past. There were some awful, boring games during those times too and some poor players. As someone has already mentioned, defences were also shocking.
Leeds fans probably look back on 06-09 as their most skilful, exciting times as that's when they were most success. For us they we had some of the worst teams and worst matches we watched (excl. 2006 and some Barrett moments).
You've picked out 8 players that span 30-40 years of RL. So it's only fair to look at the same timelines. Then you can include players like Vainikolo, Fielden, Farrell, Robinson, Sculthorpe, Lammy, Renouf, Peacock, Lyon, Burrow, McGuire, Tomkins, Barrett, Richards, Graham, Menzies, Roby, Lockers, Denny Solomona (for a season), Barba, Roby.
Most of these players were exciting, creative, skilful and most will go down as legends of RL and performed consistently in SL recently.
If you want players from the last couple of seasons then Tomkins, Maloney, Makinson, Johnstone, Lomax, Marshall, Williams, Hurrell, Folau, Thompson, Austin, Hastings, Kelly, Walmsley, McGillvary, Lockers, Kasiano. Most of these are world class players or exciting in SL or will go onto become a legend.
