Eels fullback Jarryd Hayne set to claim Dally M Player of the Year award
HIS red-hot form has left a vapour trail through the NRL to propel Parramatta to the cusp of premiership favouritism.
And just as the Eels' fortunes have swung on the back of a seven-game winning streak, Jarryd Hayne looks set to snatch the coveted Dally M player of the year award on the back of the greatest form surge in NRL history.
The fullback was 10 points behind Dally M leader Johnathan Thurston when voting went behind closed doors following round 16.
One more big performance against the Dragons in tonight's WIN Jubilee blockbuster could be enough to seal the game's greatest individual honour.
Although official voting remains secret until Tuesday, TAB Sportsbet estimates the 21-year-old may have polled 19 votes in the past nine rounds, including Origin III, to vault two clear of Thurston.
"Potentially he could have pulled 15 points out of the last six games," TAB Sportsbet spokesman Matt Jenkins said. "That's 15 points from a possible 18.
"It all depends on how many Daniel Mortimer has taken from him."
When official voting closed, Thurston led the field with 20 points from Luke Lewis and Nathan Friend (15), Kurt Gidley and Matt Orford (14), Bulldogs pair Michael Ennis and Ben Hannant (13), and Robbie Farah, Jamie Soward and Ben Creagh 11.
Hayne was 15th on 10, alongside Billy Slater, Trent Barrett and Trent Waterhouse.
Jenkins estimates Hayne is now on 29, with Thurston (27) the only player able to catch the Parramatta flyer.
The other big mover has been Manly's Anthony Watmough.
But three-time player of the year Andrew Johns and premiership-winning coach Michael Hagan are convinced it is a one-man race.
"I think Hayne will win it. Hayne deserves it. He deserves first, second and third," Johns said.
"From round 16 plus Origin, he would have scored 25 points. Freakish. Unbelievable. He's been that dominant."
Hagan said that while Thurston had a strong lead before Origin III, Hayne's back end of the year had him in the box seat.
"The Cowboys have lost four of the last five so I don't think JT can win it," he said.
Hagan said Dragons five-eighth Jamie Soward appeared to have fallen victim to high-polling teammates, with the St George Illawarra playmaker on 12 points with back-rower Ben Creagh when voting closed.
"I just assumed Soward might have more points up his sleeve when they went behind closed doors," Hagan said. "I think he would have needed to be higher up the order. But they have only lost over the last three weeks so he has probably polled consistently up until that point."
