Full of potential ... Josh Reynolds is one of the NRL's rising stars. Source: Gregg Porteous / News Limited
The kick-off to the 2013 NRL season is creeping up on us and as we countdown to the first game on March 7, foxsports.com.au is getting you into debate mood.
Who are the game’s top 10 rookies? Who are 10 veterans you wouldn’t trade for a gold mine?
What about the 10 players knocking on the door for State of Origin?
We’ll be revealing all this and more over the next two weeks and asking you to get involved in the debate by listing your top 10.
And today we reveal 10 of the most exciting prospects to have graduated to NRL level in recent years as we celebrate our Big 10 rising stars.
Will our Big 10 rising stars play key roles at their clubs in 2013? Who have we missed? Vote in our poll and leave a comment at the bottom of the page to have your say!
Which NRL rising star would you most like to have at your club?
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck - (NRL SuperCoach value: $166,300)
This Roosters powerhouse had a massive impact in his six NRL appearances in 2012 and with a clutch of dangerous edge players like Sonny Bill Williams and Michael Jennings to profit from in 2013 it could be a very big year ahead. The 19-year-old deputised superbly for Anthony Minichiello and he looks to be the Count's natural successor when he finally hangs up the boots.
Josh Mansour - (NRL SuperCoach value: $276,900)
Perhaps the biggest surprise packet of the outside backs to enter the competition in 2012, Mansour has future superstar written all over him. In just 12 games for one of the weakest sides in the competition, the 22-year-old put up incredible statistics for any player, let alone a rookie. But what stood out above all else was his workrate and the priceless ability to get his side going forward as he eked out a superhuman average of 162.4 metres per game.
Konrad Hurrell - (NRL SuperCoach value: $248,400)
In a disastrous year for the Warriors, Konrad Hurrell was one of the few shining lights, as he showed it wasn't just in the under 20s where he could bully the opposition. At just 21, the 100kg powerhouse probably still has some growing left in him - a scary proposition for the many opponents who he bulldozed on his way to 12 tries from 15 starts in his rookie year.
Josh Reynolds - (NRL SuperCoach value: $294,000)
If any one Bulldogs player enhanced the reputation of Des Hasler in 2012 it was Josh Reynolds. Hasler has made his name as a coach who gets the best out of his players and Reynolds' stunning season was a testament to this. After a frustrating 2011 stuck behind the likes of Kris Keating and Trent Hodkinson, Reynolds was given an opportunity to nail a starting spot at five-eighth in 2012. By the end of the season he had elevated himself to one of the prime movers in a grand final team and a potential candidate for State of Origin.
Adam Reynolds - (NRL SuperCoach value: $259,700)
After the polarising departure of cult figure Chris Sandow, the Rabbitohs went into the 2012 season with their hopes of a finals appearance resting heavily on the shoulders of promising rookie Adam Reynolds. Fast forward 12 months and the 22-year-old is Rookie of the Year and a proven performer in big games. He still has some way to go to cement himself in the elite category of halves alongside Johnathan Thurston, Cooper Cronk, Benji Marshall, Todd Carney, Kieran Foran and Mitchell Pearce but if he can overcome the dreaded second year syndrome he may just graduate to superstar in 2013.
Origin Bolters
Recruits
Rookies
Rivalries
Off-Contract Stars
Try Scorers
Alex McKinnon - (NRL SuperCoach value: $179,600)
Perhaps the most underrated player on this list, McKinnon is valued highly by one of the best judges in the game - Wayne Bennett. Bennett was so impressed with McKinnon's graduation from a promising schoolboy career to the NRL with the Dragons that he pidgeon holed the then 19-year-old utility with Darius Boyd as a must-have when he moved to Newcastle. A full season in the top grade last year gave us some insight into why and with ex-teammates Jeremy Smith and Beau Scott reuniting with the young firebrand in 2013, you'd expect it to be a big season ahead.
Andrew Everingham - (NRL SuperCoach value: $199,100)
Freakish finishers are becoming the norm rather than the exception as the NRL's outside backs conjure more remarkable methods to ground the ball over the try-line every year. An incredible athlete, Everingham is a card carrying member of this exciting new breed and his strike rate of 14 tries in 20 games is just a taste of things to come. At 26, the late bloomer found his way to the Rabbitohs after sending a DVD showcasing his talent to the club. Aren't they glad he did.
Marika Koroibete - (NRL SuperCoach value: $259,900)
The flying Fijian announced himself on the NRL stage with a remarkable four try game in his second appearance in the top grade for the Tigers and after sealing the winger of the year award in last year's Toyota Cup, he'll be eager to show he's no flash in the pan. With Beau Ryan gone, Koroibete will have one wing for the taking and he'll be looking to take advantage of the wizadry of Benji Marshall inside him to try to keep up the remarkable strike rate that currently has him touching down for just over one try per game on average.
Aidan Sezer - (NRL SuperCoach value: $220,400)
Aidan Sezer showed maturity beyond his years to step up to the plate and lead the Titans around when Scott Prince was injured before partnering him as the club launched a late season revival in 2012. With Prince now gone, Sezer will have the responsibility of spearheading his side's attack as half of a greenhorn partnership most likely to be completed by Albert Kelly. The 21-year-old was rewarded for an outstanding rookie season with his first rep jumper in this year's All Stars game and if his talent can be fulfilled he is set to establish himself as one of the game's top halves for the next decade.
Josh Jackson - (NRL SuperCoach value: $287,800)
When Des Hasler arrived at the Bulldogs at the end of the 2011 season no one had heard of Josh Jackson. By the end of 2012 he had just about become a household name after forcing his way into the starting side in one of the strongest packs in the competition. Jackson can do it all, including get over the try line, which he managed four times in his 12 NRL appearances last season. Expect him to develop into an Origin prospect under Hasler.
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