NRL's Fullbacks - Your top 5 selection

[Davester]

Who would be your top 5 fullbacks in the NRL?

 

[PARRA_FAN]

1. Anthony Minichello
2. Matt Bowen
3. Billy Slater
4. Brett Hodgson
5. Wade McKinnon

 

[supermario]

you'd be about righht there parra fan.

schifofski is unluckyto miss out but that top 5 would be right on the mark (mayby hodgson before bowen)

 

[Utey]

In which Sense Attacking or Defence?

Because Minichello shouldnt be at the top. Wade is up there probably third.

Slater :lol:

Bowen is awesome. As is Hodgson when his on his game.

 

[Steven Gerrard]

1. Minichello
2. Schifcofske
3. Hornby
4. Bowen
5. Hodgson

 

[Dragon Fanatic]

1.Minichello
2.Matt Bowen
3.Billy Slater
4.Brett Hodgson
5.Ben Hornby

 

[westie]

1. Hodgson - Seems to me to be FAR safer at the back than Mini and although his kick returns are of a different style they are just as, if not more potent. I rate their support play similarly although Mini only really seems to pop up close to the line, usually from set plays. I rate Hodgo as more of a Lockyer type fullback. I.e Potential to play 5/8 and incredibly safe at the back.

2. Minichiello - Mini's kick returns are obviously rather devastating however he rarely seems to make a "break" into space like Bowen or Hodgo, rather he bounces off tackles to make good ground. Although safer than many fullbacks in the NRL, he hardly instills confidence in me when the ball is loose. Far more of an attacking player who I think is far more suited to wing.

3. Bowen - Obviously exceptionally talented on his feet, he is potent in broken play any where on the feild. Not exactly the player you would want playing fullback in an international although more than suitable for club games. He is a sort of player similar to Benji Marshall for whom there does not seem to be a suitable position. They are too good to sit on the bench for too long but as previously said, there does not seem to be an ideal position for them. I think we could see these sort of players playing lock in the near future.

After these 3 the stakes seem to decline rather rapidly.

4. Obviously Slater would probably be my 4th. His attack is brilliant and he pulled off a number of good tackles in the finals series. Not exactly the player you'd want under a bomb to win you the game. Still young, might find himself at center next year.

5. I have decided to go with Wesser with his '03 form still lingering in my head. If he can recapture some of his previous form he will once again be in the upper echelon of FB's. Brilliant support player highlighted by his try scoring stats from '03. Quite safe at the back. Potential to play for QLD should things go his way.

That's a quick summary of my top 5 fullbacks with a quick bit about utility players. Please remember that I struggled once passing the top 3 fullbacks. I geniunely believe that Hodgo is the premier fullback in the NRL, so please do not try and link my selection to any Wests Bias.

 

[Stranger]

1.Minichello
2.Matt Bowen
3.Brett Hodgson
4.Ben Hornby
5. Schifcofske

 

[Raider_69]

When talking complete fullbacks, assuming all are in 100% healthy and at their best.

1. Clinton Schifcofske - the best most complete fullback in the comp atm
2. Hodgeson - probably would be first if not for my raiders bias, also a complete fullback
3. Minichello - great attacking weapon, suspect defence
4. Matt Bowen - see above
5. Billy Slater - re: see above

As for their positions at rd 26 last year id agree with Parra Fan except switch Bowen and Mini

 

[stubbsie]

1. Mini
2. Slater
3. Bowen
4. Mckinnon
5. Schifcofske

 

[Magpie Nick]

1. Hodgson
2. Bowen
3. Minichiello
4. Slater
5. Wesser

 

[oxenham]

1. Slater
2. Bowen
3. Minichiello
Big gap
4. Hodgson
5. Wesser

 

[simon says]

Hodgson...his form in a crap team was unbelievable.
Mini..not a classic FB,but you have to put him in there.
Shifa....top shelf.
McKinnon....a real goer.
Slater....squeezes in cos he showed he could tackle in the finals.\

Id just like to say that atm we have THE most talented group of FBs I have ever seen,you could choose any of the best ten to play for Oz and they would go very well.

Cheers.

 

[Davester]

1. Mini
2. Slater
3. Bowen
4. Mckinnon
5. Schifcofske

No Hodgson - Bit shocked. Why's that?

 

[tiger_nick]

1. Minichello
2. Hodgson
3. Bowen
4. Slater
5. Patten


* This is on 2004 form alone .If it was on 2003 form I would have Schifcoske at number 2 but I thought his attack was very average this year.

 

[Tommy Smith]

1. Hodgson - Seems to me to be FAR safer at the back than Mini and although his kick returns are of a different style they are just as, if not more potent. I rate their support play similarly although Mini only really seems to pop up close to the line, usually from set plays. I rate Hodgo as more of a Lockyer type fullback. I.e Potential to play 5/8 and incredibly safe at the back.

2. Minichiello - Mini's kick returns are obviously rather devastating however he rarely seems to make a "break" into space like Bowen or Hodgo, rather he bounces off tackles to make good ground. Although safer than many fullbacks in the NRL, he hardly instills confidence in me when the ball is loose. Far more of an attacking player who I think is far more suited to wing..

Oh no! People are still using the "more suited to the wing" line He was DallyM FB of the year and Harry Sutherland Medal winner for best player on the Kangaroo tour. What does he do to have to convince some of you neanderthals that he's a bloody FB?!?

Hodgson is not incredibly safe at the back. He dropped more bombs than Minichiello and his defence is very suspect. He might be safe but certainly not "incredibly safe". And to say his kick returns are just as, if not more potent than Minichiello's is just laughable. The men in white coats will be on their way around to your house once they read that. Mini is without doubt the best kick returner. That's his trademark, the thing that separates him from all the other players in the world. The stats say so, i.e. tackle breaks, metres gained and so does the footage if you actually watch games from an unbiased viewpoint.

3. Matt Bowen...I think we could see these sort of players playing lock in the near future.

:? Considering you have to be a good, solid defender with abit of size at lock i can't quite see that happening.

 

[Raider_69]

* This is on 2004 form alone .If it was on 2003 form I would have Schifcoske at number 2 but I thought his attack was very average this year.

and you'd be spot on
schif had a piss poor year in attack this year
hopefully next season he will be back to the form that saw him lead the Dally M's for the majority of season 03

 

[Kris_man]

you guys are crazy criticising the defence of guys like Mini and Bowen, then saying nothing about Brett Hodgson. when i've watched Tigers games, i've noticed that players have little troubles beating his last line of defence. Clinton Schifcofske is by far the best defensive fullback (although Hornby has a great effective tackle percentage) but he's well behind some of the other guys in attack. one guy who hasn't got a mention yet is Brett Stewart - the guy's brilliant, and i'd be bloody surprised if he goes a career without wearing the no.1 Australian jersey. i'm not saying he has potential to fulfill, i think he's already top notch, he just needs to prove he can deliver over a couple of seasons. anyway, here's my top 5:

1. Anthony Minichiello - there's no substitute for speed. and i think he's the best at bomb defusing in the comp.
2. Matt Bowen - so so brilliant in attack, i don't think i've seen anyone quite like him.
3. Brett Stewart - put him in a good team and he'll get a try a game. wait, he already does. fastest player in the game, and great build for a fullback.
4. Brett Hodgson - bloody good player. the Tigers are very lucky to have him - take him out of their lineup and take out a lot of their pointscoring opportunities.
5. Billy Slater - i don't know why people diss him so much in regards to defusing bombs. i've seen him take heaps of great catches at the back, and rarely seen him miss one. maybe i was just watching the wrong games.

 

[Kris_man]

Mini is without doubt the best kick returner. That's his trademark, the thing that separates him from all the other players in the world. The stats say so, i.e. tackle breaks, metres gained and so does the footage if you actually watch games from an unbiased viewpoint.

actually, Matt Bowen makes the most metres per kick return, 12.8m, with Clinton Schifcofske a close second at 12.5m 8). Anthony Minichiello sits at 10th, averaging 10.4m per kick return. so there is plenty of doubt.

 

[ledzep]

agree with kris_man
Stewart is an awesome prospect and should play a lot of rep football

my five:
Minichiello
Hodgson
Hornby
Stewart
McKinnon