Pundit names four men overlooked for Man of Steel shortlist including Super League’s ‘best player’

Sky Sports pundit Jon Wilkin believes Warrington Wolves’ George Williams and a number of others can count themselves unfortunate not to have been shortlisted for the Man of Steel award.

The three candidates were announced on Wednesday afternoon with Hull KR half-back Mikey Lewis, Salford Red Devils talisman Marc Sneyd and Warrington full-back Matt Dufty all in contention for the main prize. The trio were the three men that finished top of the leaderboard over the course of the year, with a panel of former players handing out points based on performances over the year.

All three players have been involved in the play-offs, with Lewis and Dufty set to go head to head on Friday night with a spot in the Grand Final on the line, while Sneyd saw his side beaten by Leigh Leopards last week.

However, Wilkin believes four players have been overlooked, with the pundit even going as far as describing Williams as by far the best player in the competition.

“Three exceptional players,” Wilkin said while reacting to the Man of Steel news on Sky. “I’ll start with Marc Sneyd, in a team that spend much less than everyone else and were probably tipped to not to much this year, Salford, Marc Sneyd has been their main man and one of the main reasons they’ve been good.

“Mikey Lewis, what a year he’s had. He’s absolutely deserving of his place as one of the three. He’s the best player in Hull at the minute and certainly one of the top players in the competition. Matt Dufty from Warrington has had a sensational year, he’s such a dangerous runner of the ball.

“I will say this though, there’s a lot of players who are unlucky. I’ve watched Elliot Minchella produce maybe one of the best seasons for a loose-forward I’ve seen in some time.

“I find it quite strange there’s nobody from Wigan there when they’ve pretty much dominated everything and are at the top. You’d say Jake Wardle, maybe Harry Smith were a shout.”

“But it’s the main man, one of the best players in the competition. If Man of Steel should be anything, it should be given to best player and I think that’s George Williams, and it’s George Williams by some way at the minute.

“Certainly three fantastic candidates there, but there is a conversation, a wider discussion about who has been the best player in the competition.”