The 11 most sensational try-scoring finishers in Super League history, including Wigan Warriors and St Helens stars
Tommy Makinson (St Helens), Lesley Vainikolo (Bradford Bulls), Tom Johnstone (Catalans Dragons) and Liam Marshall (Wigan Warriors) in Super League action
Super League has been blessed with a number of phenomenal wingers over the years, and their ability to finish has, quite frankly, defied physics.
Wigan Warriors winger Liam Marshall has scored from several spectacular finishes this season, including an outrageous effort in their win over Leigh Leopards a fortnight ago.
Marshall’s try scoring exploits got us thinking: who have been the best finishers in Super League over the years? Love Rugby League has gone through the archives and picked out 11 of the best try scorers, with some included below for a different kind of finishing ability.
Liam Marshall
The 28-year-old has an incredible try scoring record for Wigan, scoring 142 tries in 171 appearances for his hometown club so far.
Marshall’s story to the top is remarkable. He came through the academy at Wigan but wasn’t offered a full-time deal at the end of his time with the Under-19s. As a result, he plied his trade for the club’s reserves whilst becoming a trainee accountant. He even spent a season on loan at Swinton in 2016, scoring 20 tries in 22 games for the Lions.
Marshall has produced some outrageous try-scoring finishes in recent seasons, and is now a mainstay in Matt Peet’s 17.
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Tom Johnstone
We have all seen and admired a number of the acrobatic finishes in the corner that Johnstone has scored over the years, whether that be in a Wakefield Trinity or Catalans Dragons shirt.
The decision to take the corner flag out of touch has been one of the best rule changes to happen in rugby league, and players like Johnstone are certainly benefitting from that. At the time of writing, the England international has 116 tries to his name in 150 Super League appearances.
Tommy Makinson
Makinson is similar to Johnstone in the sense that he has produced sensational finishes in the corner time and time again. The St Helens stalwart, who will be a Catalans Dragons player in 2025, has been one of the premier wingers in Super League for well over a decade now.
The England international scored 201 tries in 328 appearances for Saints since making his first team debut back in 2011. He has also kicked 273 goals, racking up more than 1,300 points in the Red Vee.
Lesley Vainikolo
The Tonga-born powerhouse is included in this list for slightly different reasons compared to the likes of Johnstone and Makinson. He didn’t produce the spectacular finishes like the aforementioned duo, but boy oh boy, could he score a try.
The best way to describe Vainikolo’s style of play was that he was rugby league’s version of Jonah Lomu. You always felt for his opposite winger because the New Zealand international was a human wrecking ball, and he had the pace to go alongside his strength. Nicknamed The Volcano, big Lesley scored 149 tries in 152 appearances for Bradford between 2002 and 2007.
Greg Eden
Greg Eden just knows how to score a try, doesn’t he? A man of blistering pace and lethal footwork, the now Featherstone Rovers winger is 18th in Super League’s all-time try-scoring charts.
The 33-year-old played for Huddersfield Giants, Hull KR, Salford Red Devils (loan) and Castleford Tigers during his Super League career, having scored 148 tries in 181 Super League games.
Ryan Hall
Hall just had to be included in this list, didn’t he? He broke the record for Super League tries earlier this season, surpassing the previous record set by his former Leeds Rhinos team-mate and good friend Danny McGuire.
The Hull KR winger, who will return to Leeds in 2025, has scored a remarkable 248 tries in 364 Super League appearances. Hall is undoubtedly one of the best wingers Super League has seen.
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Matty Ashton
Ashton’s backstory is also a brilliant one, having played for Rochdale Mayfield in the National Conference League before playing for the Mullumbimby Giants in Australia’s lower grades before getting his shot in the semi-pro ranks with Swinton.
After scoring 30 tries in 25 games for the Lions, Ashton was rewarded with a shot in Super League with Warrington Wolves in 2020 where he has remained ever since. The 25-year-old has scored 61 tries in 88 appearances for Warrington so far, earning international honours with England in the process.
Josh Charnley
Charnley is currently third in Super League’s all-time try scorers list, sitting just two tries behind McGuire and three behind leader Hall, having scored 245 tries in 291 appearances in Super League.
The Lancastrian spent two years in rugby union with Sale Sharks between 2016 and 2018, and you’d suspect had he stayed in Super League during that time that he’d be leading that top spot by a fair distance! With Charnley being three years younger than Hall, you’d think he will hold the Super League record sooner or later.
Jermaine McGillvary
Jermaine McGillvary is a Huddersfield Giants legend. The 36-year-old came through the ranks at his hometown club, scoring a staggering 209 tries in 312 appearances for the Giants between 2010 and 2023. He sits sixth in Super League’s all-time leading try scorers.
The experienced winger, who won 21 international caps in total for Great Britain and England, is now plying his trade in the Championship for Wakefield Trinity after making the move ahead of this season.
Tom Briscoe
Tom Briscoe’s longevity in the game is astonishing, with the 34-year-old recently making the move back to Hull FC – more than a decade after leaving the Black and Whites!
Featherstone-born Briscoe has played for Leeds Rhinos, Leigh Leopards and Hull during his career, scoring 169 tries in 341 Super League appearances. He also won 15 caps for England between 2009 and 2013, scoring 11 tries for his country.
He’s not renowned for his acrobatic finishes like Ashton and Marshall: but Briscoe certainly knows where the try-line is.
Pat Richards
One of Super League’s greatest overseas signings, and a legend in Wigan. Pat Richards could score tries, and had one of the most accurate boots you are ever likely to see.
Richards spent eight years at Wigan between 2006 and 2012, scoring 168 tries in 224 games, whilst kicking 896 goals, racking up almost 2,500 points. The Ireland international also spent the final season of his career in Super League with Catalans Dragons in 2016, scoring nine tries and kicking 75 goals in 21 games for the French club.
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