Five of the Best: Centres

[josie andrews]

Five of the Best returns this week with a look at the greatest Centres to have featured during the Super League era.

KEITH SENIOR – SHEFFIELD EAGLES/LEEDS RHINOS
By far the most coveted centre in the Super League era, Leeds Rhinos great Keith Senior was selected in five Dream Teams during his 13 year spell at the Headingley club.

Signing from Sheffield Eagles at the end of the 1999 season, Senior made an immediate impression with the Rhinos, finishing his first season as joint-top scorer with 18 tries. He also featured strongly as Leeds secured their first Super League title in 2004, eventually beating Bradford Bulls at Old Trafford that October.

Senior had been named in three consecutive Dream Teams between 2002 and 2004 but proved his longevity, by also being selected in the 2009 and 2010 season-best squads. He was an integral part of Leeds’ incredible success in Super League, winning five titles during his time at the club.

He is joint-second in the Super League try-scoring records with 199 tries, and sixth in the all-time appearances list, with a total of 413.


JAMIE LYON – ST HELENS
He may have only played in Super League for two seasons, but the Australian made a huge impact during his spell at St Helens between 2005 and 2006. He arrived from the NRL after hitting a rut with club Parramatta and immediately hit the ground running at Knowsley Road, setting up two tries as the Saints beat Widnes 40-18 on debut day.

After his first season at the club, he’d racked up 22 tries and 42 goals and off the field had won two League Express Player of the Month Awards. Most notably though, his excellent debut campaign in England was recognised with the Man of Steel Award as well as being selected in the Super League Dream Team.

In the following season, Lyon set a record for the most points scored for St Helens in a match, with a total of 32 when they thrashed Castleford. Another selection in the Dream Team came that season, as well as being an instrumental part in Saints’ Super League and Challenge Cup double that, scoring points in both finals.


GARY CONNOLLY – WIGAN WARRIORS/LEEDS RHINOS
Despite starting his career as a Full-Back, he was equally adept at playing Centre and this became his regular playing position come the Super League era. He joined Wigan in 1993 winning three consecutive Championship titles with the club in the mid-90s.

Although Wigan were unable to repeat that success in the first season of Super League, Connolly earned personal recognition by being selected within the inaugural Dream Team alongside five of his Wigan team mates. He repeated this feat in 1998, which was the first season the Warriors took the Super League title, when they beat Leeds Rhinos at Old Trafford.

A third Dream Team nomination followed in 1999 before he won the Challenge Cup for a third time with the Warriors in 2002. He almost made it four the following year following his move to Leeds, but the Rhinos were defeated by Bradford Bulls. However, a Man of the Match performance saw him named as the Lance Todd Trophy Winner, which would sit alongside a fourth and final selection in the Super League Dream Team that year.


PAUL NEWLOVE – ST HELENS/CASTLEFORD TIGERS
A wind back to the early years of Super League now, with Newlove part of a strong Saints side that enjoyed plenty of success at the turn of the century. The Pontefract-born player joined the club in 1995 from Bradford Northern, for an initial fee of £250,000.

His first taste of silverware at Saints was in the 1996 Challenge Cup final, when they beat Bradford Bulls 40-32. He was also selected in the very first Super League Dream Team that season after an impressive first campaign at the club.

His first of four Super League titles at Knowsley Road came in the inaugral season of Super League (1996) when Saints topped the table. His second title followed three years later in 1999 when the Saints defeated Bradford Bulls 8-6 in a very closely contested game. He was also named in the Dream Team for a second time that season. Further Super League honours followed in 2000 and 2002 for Saints and Newlove, as Saints beat Wigan and Bradford respectively. He returned to Yorkshire in 2003, to finish his playing days with a two-year spell at Castleford Tigers.


STEVE RENOUF – WIGAN WARRIORS
Following a highly-successful 12 year stint as Brisbane Broncos, where he won four NRL Premiership titles and became the club’s all-time leading try scorer, combative centre Steve Renouf arrived on British shores at the turn of the century.

He brought his try-scoring exploits to Wigan, with two on his debut as the Warriors smashed Whitehaven 98-4 in the Challenge Cup, and continued to score regularly in Super League. He racked up a total of 43 tries within 59 appearances during his two year spell at the club.

He also earned selections in both the 2000 and 2001 Super League Dream Teams and appeared in consecutive Grand Finals, although Wigan suffered defeat in both.

http://www.rugby-league.com/article/374 ... A49yV.dpuf

[medlocke]

George Carmont was better than Renouf over here IMO

[Nezza Faz]

I think Dean Bell should be in there somewhere ? I'd class him as a better all round player than Senior.

[josie andrews]

George Carmont was better than Renouf over here IMO

I agree

[josie andrews]

I think Dean Bell should be in there somewhere ? I'd class him as a better all round player than Senior.

Well they had to put a token Leeds player in there somewhere

[jasonnlouise]

What's worrying is that come the end of this season all of these centres will have retired. Doesn't say much for the current quality of our league hopefully some of our young centres will kick on and be named in the same breath as the 5 named.

[jasonnlouise]

Don't think Dean Bell was around for Super League era otherwise he'd be a certainty

[josie andrews]

What's worrying is that come the end of this season all of these centres will have retired. Doesn't say much for the current quality of our league hopefully some of our young centres will kick on and be named in the same breath as the 5 named.

I think all the centres named have already retired

[jasonnlouise]

I think Jamie Lyons still playing until end of the season although I may be wrong it's happened before ????

[josie andrews]

I think Jamie Lyons still playing until end of the season although I may be wrong it's happened before ????

No, sorry, my error. Forgot it was the end of this season for JL