Five current Super League players who will be considered legends when they retire

The word legend is often bandied about without much thought.

However, sometimes that moniker is very much justified. On the rugby league field, it takes a certain character to retire as a legend, but every so often one player just takes the spot by storm.

Here are five current Super League players who will be considered legends when they retire.

James Roby

One of the greatest to have ever played Super League, James Roby is St Helens through and through. With over 500 career games to his name, the number nine has won three Grand Finals and three Challenge Cups with Saints. Incredibly, Roby has won two Harry Sunderland trophies as well as the Man of Steel in 2007 to etch his name firmly into the club’s folklore. Ever the professional, it’s obvious that the number nine will still be around for a few years yet despite being 35 years old.

Kallum Watkins

Over a period of 13 seasons with the Leeds Rhinos, Kallum Watkins won six Super League titles, two Challenge Cups and one World Club Challenge before moving to the Gold Coast Titans at the end of 2019. Two seasons later and it was a return to the top flight with Toronto Wolfpack before a move to Salford Red Devils rejuvenated his career. Appointed the Leeds captain in 2018, the centre has made almost 300 appearances in Super League and was once hailed as the best centre in the world with a wicked turn of pace and extreme talent.

Ryan Hall

Like Watkins, Ryan Hall spent the vast majority of his career with Leeds before a move to the NRL came about ahead of the 2019 season. With the Rhinos, winger Hall made 327 appearances, scoring an impressive 232 tries and winning six Grand Finals, two Challenge Cups and two World Club Challenges. Hall’s importance for Leeds can be summed up by his Lance Todd trophy winning success in the 2014 Challenge Cup Final as he became one of the world’s best wingers. Now at Hull KR, the 33-year-old still has a lot to offer Tony Smith’s side.

Tommy Leuluai

A New Zealander that is one of Wigan’s greatest ever overseas signings, Tommy Leuluai has the respect of every rugby league pundit and supporter. Signing from Harlequins RL ahead of the 2007 season, the halfback became an instant hit in Lancashire, helping to steer Wigan to a Grand Final victory in 2010 and then a Challenge Cup success a year later. Though the Kiwi left to join New Zealand Warriors in 2013, Leuluai returned in 2017 like the prodigal son, winning a second Super League title in 2018. He is still a major star in the Warriors side and will be vital in their Grand Final charge once more in 2021, regardless of his age.

Grant Millington

Very few overseas players stay for nearly a decade in the Super League, but Grant Millington is one of them. And, he’s been impeccable in that time for the Tigers. The towering forward joined ahead of the 2012 season and has gone on to make over 200 appearances, including more than a handful at halfback. A rampaging prop that has the ability to throw the ball like a playmaker, Millington is now 34 years of age but continues to churn out incredible performances. Often hailed as Castleford’s greatest import, the Australian will be remembered forever on the terraces at the Jungle.