Top five current stand offs in Super League

As we continue our series of ranking the best players in each position we turn our attention to stand off, or five eighth.

Some of the best players to ever play in Super League have played the position, none better than Leeds Rhinos Danny McGuire who is the competition’s leading try scorer.

Blending half back play and a running game like a back, a six is crucial in any team’s attack as the link between forward and backs.

Super League is blessed with an array of talented stand offs so let’s take a look at the top five in our opinion.

5. Cade Cust

Cust experienced a successful first season in Super League with Wigan which resulted in silverware as the Warriors won the Challenge Cup. Being part of a Wigan team which is full of electric talent such as Jai Field and Bevan French, and working alongside a young half back, Cust played his role well by not being ball dominant but still organising the team. His influence on the team was noticed more when he couldn’t play through injury as Wigan failed to make the Grand Final.

4. Jake Truman

2022 wasn’t Trueman’s best season in Super League and his year was cut short through injury, the talented young stand off still contributed six tries and 16 try assists in only 17 games for Castleford. A move to Hull FC awaits next season and being still only 23, a fresh start at a new club could be exactly what he needs to find the form of a couple of seasons ago.

3. Mitchell Pearce

Pierce came to Super League with bags of experience after his successful career in Australia where he played over 300 games in the NRL and represented New South Wales on 19 occasions. He showed all his experience during the course of the season providing 10 try assists whilst also scoring 10 tries himself. At 33 he is now in the twilight of his career but his knowledge off playing both stand off and scrum half at the highest level is invaluable for players such as Arthur Mourgue at Catalans Dragons

2. Brodie Croft

The current Man of Steel is only number two on this list after his sensational first season in England. After a slow start to the season, Salford and Croft found a rich vein of form as they blitzed through teams with enterprising attacking play which was spearheaded by the former Melbourne Storm starlet. Croft would lead his team to a play-off semi-final in his first season and will be looking to go even further in 2023 as the Australian looks back to his best form.

1. Jonny Lomax

The obvious choice as the best Stand Off in Super League is St Helens Jonny Lomax. Arguably the best player in Super League currently, he is the architect behind the winning machine which is this current St Helens side. A rugby genius who is always three steps ahead of everyone else as the makes the game look simple at times. Criminally overlooked as a Man of Steel for a number of years now, much like another great Super League six Danny McGuire, Lomax is almost a victim of his own high standards when it comes to winning the big award.