Sky Sports pundit claims Super League’s ‘best player’ is missing from Man of Steel shortlist and makes case for Wigan Warriors pair

Sky Sports pundit Jon Wilkin has name-checked four players who he feels are unlucky to miss out on a nomination for this year’s Man of Steel: including the man he insists is Super League’s best player.

Hull KR half-back Mikey Lewis, Warrington fullback Matt Dufty and Salford star Marc Sneyd have made the three-man shortlist for the award, which will be handed out to the winner next Tuesday in Leeds.

But Wilkin, speaking on Sky Sports’ The Verdict, has named a number of players he felt were also close to being in contention.

And his headline pick was Warrington and England star George Williams – who Wilkin said was Super League’s standout player ‘by some way’ and that if the award was to crown the competition’s best player, Williams should be on the shortlist.

“It’s the main man, one of the best players in the competition,” Wilkin said when asked for his thoughts on who was unlucky to miss out. “If Man of Steel should be anything, it should be given to best player and I think that’s George Williams, and it’s George Williams by some way at the minute.

“There’s three fantastic candidates there. But there is a conversation, a wider conversation about who has been the best player in the competition.”

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Wilkin also revealed he had been impressed with three more players that were in the mix: Hull KR captain Elliot Minchella, and Wigan Warriors pair Jake Wardle and Harry Smith.

He said: “There’s a lot of players who are unlucky. I’ve watched Elliot Minchella produce one of the best seasons for a loose-forward I’ve seen in some time.

“I find it quite strange there’s nobody from Wigan there when they’ve dominated [pretty much everything and are at the top. You’d say Jake Wardle, maybe Harry Smith were a shout.”

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