Workhorse Watch Round 1

2024 NRLCEO Workhorse Watch Round 1 – Did you hear about Morgan?

Morgan Smithies announced himself to the NRLCEO world, leading all forwards with an opening round 65 involvements. 52 of those were tackles but he ran for more metres than he averaged in the UK super league so its a positive start. There were 61 players who scored a WH in Round 1 with no player managing a DWH.

WORKING HARD

Morgan Smithies (Raiders)

52 tackles, 13 runs for 91m in 68 minutes – WH (0.96 stats per minute)

Welcome to the NRL Morgan Smithies! He didn’t look out of place at all, managed 68 minutes in his first hit out and had a tackle efficiency of 94%. I think we are getting exactly what we thought from an NRLCEO perspective, a guaranteed WH each week but thats about it. 91 run metres is average for a lock but lets hope he can develop his ball playing skills while he is in the NRL. Smithies is signed until end of 2026 so for those in keeper/contract leagues he is only good for a couple of seasons unless he extends his stay.

Phoenix Crossland (Knights)

61 tackles, 2 runs for 18m in 72 minutes – WH (0.88 spm)

Still hard to imagine this blonde haired ragdoll as a regular WH performer, but thats exactly what he has become when he starts at hooker.  Beware the impending return of Jayden Brailey, although who knows how long he can stay injury free so Crossland might be a handy player to keep in your squad if you have the depth.

Jordan Riki (Broncos)

48 tackles, 11 runs for 112m in 80 minutes – WH (0.7444 spm)

Riki struggled to maintain WH consistency last season, scoring a WH in only 7 of his 19 matches. It could be a bounce back year for him but its too early to tell. Watch the Broncos forward rotations to see if he starts getting spelled. Riki was lazy at times last year in a team that had a lot of success but with Capewell moving to the Warriors, his job security is very good.

Tohu Harris (Warriors)

34 tackles, 25 runs for 216m in 80 minutes – WH (1.13 spm)

Tohu shows no signs of slowing down. He played the full 80 in round 1, interestingly the Warriors did not use Tom Ale off the bench which meant they only played with 16. We have been critical of Tohu’s running metres in the past but he smashed out 216 run metres for a DME.

HARDLY WORKING

Shaun Lane (Eels) 

25 tackles, 13 runs for 97m in 80 minutes (0.48 spm)

Can Shaun Lane get back to his devastating best? That is the big question and it was not answered in round 1. A very poor spm of 0.48 leaves NRLCEO’s wondering how long to persist with him in their squad. There is plenty of time for him to find his form but at the moment he is being completely overshadowed by Bryce Cartwright on the other edge.

Addin Fonua-Blake (Warriors)

19 tackles, 17 runs for 177m in 56 minutes (0.64 spm)

A slow start for AFB, failing to score a WH in round 1. He did run for a solid 177m to nab a ME and he scored a try to make up for missing the WH like any good forward will do for you. Now that he has his future settles at the Sharks in 2025, there is some concern his form may dip as it naturally does for some players after they sign a new contract. I don’t think this will be the case for AFB so it’s not really a concern for mine if you have him in your squad.

Daniel Saifiti (Knights)

27 tackles, 8 runs for 79m in 43 minutes (0.81 spm)

Where has his form gone? He peaked at 14 WH’s in 2021 and looked like improving on that, however he fell away in 2022 with 9 WH’s and then again last year with 8 WH’s. He started from the bench in round 1 which may be a result of his downward trend in form. He certainly is not at State Of Origin level at the moment which is a worry for NSW if he gets picked again.

SPUD POOL LOOKOUT

Jacob Saifiti (Knights)

37 tackles, 12 runs for 107m in 50 minutes – WH (0.98 spm)

A very high spm of 0.98 for a front rower. Jacob looks to be stepping out from his brother’s shadow and is a player on the rise. If he can keep the starting spot then he could be in for a career best season in NRLCEO.

Thomas Eisenhuth (Dragons)

42 tackles, 8 runs for 58m in 72 minutes – WH (0.86 spm)

Eisenhuth always showed promise at the Storm but struggled for regular game time. The same thing could happen at the Dragons as they have recruited well in the back row (RFM and Leilua). I liked the look of him at lock and De Belin starting at prop. If he is named at lock again this week then you should be all over him, the guy had a WH at half time in round 1.

Ben Trbojevic (Sea Eagles)

38 tackles, 10 runs for 64m in 71 minutes – WH (0.75 spm)

Another player carrying the burden of his older brothers, however Burbo is ready to deliver in NRLCEO. If he is in your spud spool, stop reading and go get him. He has the potential to become a CEO gun back rower and lets hope he can be one of those injury free Trbojevic’s.

Terrell May (Roosters)

30 tackles, 17 runs for 157m in 54 minutes – WH (0.87 spm)

‘Terrell just keeps getting better the longer I leave him out there” from the mouth of Trent Robinson. Its unlikely that May is still available in many leagues, if he is then he is a keeper. Makes his tackles and runs big metres, he will be a premium front row draft target over the next few seasons. The only thing to worry about here is where is brothers are in the equation, does his form hold up he he doesn’t end up playing with them at the same club as he declared at the start of this season?

WORTH MENTIONING….

Corey Jensen (Broncos)

47 tackles, 9 runs for 89m in 56 minutes – WH (1.00 spm)

With Flegler moving over to the Dolphins there is an opportunity in the Broncos pack. Jensen was less than handy last season with only 5 WH’s but I expect that number to go up in 2024. His numbers are slightly inflated due to Piakura being ruled out after 4 minutes. I expect him to maintain the starting spot for now but there are some big boys on the bench threatening to steal his minutes.

Klese Haas (Titans)

42 tackles, 7 runs for 62m in 80 minutes – WH (0.61 spm)

The younger Haas is still early on in his career but this is a good sign for a player of the future. He will have to carry his brother’s name and reputation but I have seen enough to know he can be a regular WH performer when he becomes a regular starter. Unfortunately he is keeping David Fifita’s spot warm and will be relegated back to the bench soon enough where he is not CEO relevant.

Zac Hosking (Raiders)

37 tackles, 9 runs for 83m in 80 minutes – WH (0.58 spm)

Hosking is a player for 2025 as he will no doubt replace Elliott Whitehead in the starting back row. For now he gets the start due to Whitehead missing the first month of the season but he will likely drop back to the bench when Whitehead returns.

Samuel McIntyre (Cowboys)

31 tackles, 15 runs for 122m in 47 minutes – WH (0.98 spm)

I liked what I saw from McIntyre in a dominant Cowboys display. Taumalolo only played 21 minutes which is only going to add fuel to the fire of his potential departure from North Queensland. Jordan McLean also only played small minutes so perhaps there is something happening here with McIntyre playing a bigger role?

WORKHORSE PACK OF THE WEEK (most involvements by eligible position)

8. Payne Haas (1) (Broncos) – 57

9. Phoenix Crossland (1) (Knights) – 63

10. Corey Jensen (1) (Broncos) – 56

11. Jordan Riki (1) (Broncos) – 59

12. Eliesa Katoa (1) (Storm) – 51

13. Morgan Smithies (1) (Raiders) – 65

(1) – number of times featured in the Workhorse Pack of the Week

 

WH – Workhorse

DWH – Double Workhorse

ME – Metre Eater

DME – Double Metre Eater

SPM – Stats per minute played