The Steve Prescott Man of Steel is the most prestigious award within rugby league in the northern hemisphere, handed to the player deemed as the best in a given season.
Plenty of incredible players have won the award, but even more have failed to be crowned Man of Steel, with players such as Leeds Rhinos golden generation stars Kevin Sinfield, Rob Burrow and Danny McGuire having never lifted it.
More recently the award has evaded the likes of Jonny Lomax, Lachlan Coote and in the past two seasons Jack Welsby. It is by no means an easy award to attain, which makes it even more incredible that a handful of men could possibly lift the award for a second time in 2024.
T0 date just four men have won the award multiple times with only Ellery Hanley being crowned Man of Steel on three occasions. The other three men are Paul Sculthorpe, who incredibly won the award back-to-back, Andy Farrell and the recently retired Sam Tomkins.
With the 2024 season on the horizon we’ve looked at the possible candidates who could lift the trophy for a second time, with two looking far more likely than the other three.
Danny Houghton – 2016 Winner
Whilst Danny Houghton might be the oldest man on this list, there is actually someone who won the award prior to him that is still active in Super League. Aged 35 now Houghton is heading into what could well be his last season with Hull FC, the hooker having been a one club man and played a whopping 436 times for the Black and Whites. With New Zealand hooker Nu Brown having been recruited it’s unclear if Houghton will even start, so challenging for a second Man of Steel award would seem highly unlikely.
Zak Hardaker – 2015 Winner
Hardaker lifted the award the year before Houghton for his impressive season at Leeds, and he was close to being a two time winner when it came to the 2017 award but was edged out by Castleford teammate Luke Gale. The full-back has now shifted in the centres where he shone for Leigh Leopards in 2023, however a centre is yet to be crowned Man of Steel since Jamie Lyon in 2005.
Daryl Clark – 2014 Winner
Clark is the oldest man on this list but he did win his award the longest time ago, ten seasons ago during his time with Castleford Tigers. Since then the hooker has had an entire spell with Warrington Wolves for whom he played 243 games, and now the 30-year-old takes on a new challenge. Clark steps into the number nine shirt at St Helens, a jersey previously worn by just Keiron Cunningham and James Roby for almost three decades. It would be an incredible tale if he can earn the accolade again, 10 years after his first victory.
Paul McShane – 2020 Winner
McShane was the man who would eventually replace Clark at the Jungle and he’d become the fourth Tiger to earn the award in the space of ten years when he was named Man of Steel in 2020. He’s coming off the back of two tough years at Wheldon Road, each for different reasons. The 2022 campaign saw the team collapse around him with McShane having to become the chief playmaker for much of the season, whilst 2023 saw him injured himself making just 15 appearances. The Tigers will need a huge bounce back year for McShane to be a candidate for the end-of-season award in 2024.
Brodie Croft – 2022 Winner
Now the list gets into the most recent winners and with it the men who have a legitmate chance at earning some honours and awards. Croft lifted the Man of Steel trophy during his first season in England, linking up with Salford Red Devils and instantly clicking in Paul Rowley’s free-flowing style of rugby. Fast forward another year and Croft made the massive move to Headingley where he will now be marching the Rhinos around the field. Leeds had previously swung big on their half-back duo when recruiting ex-Canberra Raiders pair Aiden Sezer and Blake Austin, but Croft now comes in alongside another former Raider in Matt Frawley. If the Rhinos lift silverware in 2024 then there’s a strong chance Croft could be lifting some personal trophies too.
Bevan French – 2023 Winner
The reigning Man of Steel is arguably the favourite to retain the title, however only Paul Sculthorpe has ever managed to go back-to-back when it comes to the Man of Steel award. Despite that you would still fancy French to have a strong case based on the electric play we saw from the Australian in 2023. With Wigan expected to be incredibly strong again and Matt Peet having confirmed to Serious About Rugby League previously that French will continue in the halves, you’d be a brave person to say outright that he won’t lift the title once again.
