Right here, right now.
1. Daly Cherry-Evans
2. Cooper Cronk
3. Mitchell Pearce
4. Adam Reynolds
5. Shaun Johnson
6. Tyrone Roberts
7. Albert Kelly
8. Trent Hodkinson
9. Jeff Robson
10. Peter Wallace
11. Robert Lui
12. Sam Williams
13. Chris Sandow
14. Ben Hunt
15. Luke Brooks
16. Mitchell Cornish
That list will almost certainly change come 2014 but it's difficult to really rate the rookies and how they'll perform in the NRL just yet.
Some justifications...
Until the finals, Pearce and Reynolds were neck and neck but the premiership gave Pearce the edge. Both have their strengths and weaknesses and until Reynolds plays Origin it's hard to really gauge just how good he is. Right now, he strikes me as a good club halfback, which is exactly what Pearce is.
Johnson takes the final top five spot on the back of his impressive World Cup form. Final aside, I thought he had a good campaign and he's definitely provided the Warriors with some highlights over the past few years. If he can develop his skills, could easily been in the top 3, but that's a big question.
Kelly was a big mover and shaker in 2013 but couldn't justify him finishing ahead of Roberts who helped his team make the finals and was one of the best on ground in that huge upset against the Storm. On form, Kelly may have the edge, but Roberts has the better background and looks the more secure option...for now.
Hodkinson rounds out my 8, thought he made a positive difference to the Dogs who had a difficult year and all-round he's very solid. Robson came close given his combination with Carney but fell just short.
Wallace dropped a few spots on the back of being relegated to the bench and given the tap on the shoulder. I can see him finding a spot in the 8 if he finds his feet at Penrith but the dour end to his stint at Brisbane hurt him here.
Then we get into the lower end of the spectrum - Lui > Williams on the basis that Lui actually saw some first grade in 2013 and while he wasn't always good he had his moments. Both have had stints in the finals in the past.
Two consecutive wooden spoons has seen Sandow plummet to the lowest ranked position for experienced halfbacks. Still, he's had his odd good day (usually against the Broncos) so I don't think he's into the negative category just yet.
Then we're onto the rookies and it's basically down to who has the most runs on the board. I thought Hunt was very mixed in the back end of 2013, showed some good vision but let himself down on certain basics (eg. long distance kicking).
Brooks had an impressive debut but you can't gauge a lot out of that just yet.
Cornish hasn't even played first grade. If we went for the more experienced alternative (aka McCrone) I'd say he'd finish behind Williams given his best performances were at five eigth but hardly high praise.
