6 Tackles: Hookers of 2013
There was not a more hard working hooker than Houghton in 2013 and his efforts deserved more than just a Challenge Cup runners-up medal. Over the season he made a stunning 1179 tackles which was 240 more than Super League‘s second-highest tackler, Paul Aiton.
With McIlorum at dummy-half Wigan were given a platform solid enough to achieve Challenge Cup and Super League glory. His work often went under the radar but England head coach Steve McNamara noticed, and he went on to make two appearances at the World Cup.
South Sydney set the pace for most of the season in the NRL and Luke was at the heart of all their best play. His running from dummy-half is unmatched by anyone, and the sheer passion he shows whilst playing in the black of New Zealand made him one of the players of the World Cup.
Although Lunt was part of the 2012 Super League winning Leeds side, 2013 was a much more successful season for him on a personal level. As one of the form players of the year, he scored 23 tries in 27 appearances and was a major part of Huddersfield winning the League Leaders Shield.
Smith has now won everything he possibly could in his career, and mostly as a captain. After lifting the World Cup trophy for Australia he will now go down as an all-time great, not just because of his skill and leadership, but also his often faultless decision making.
Fiji hooker Storer put two brilliant performances in against Australia and made 34 tackles against England during the World Cup. That is made all the more remarkable considering he retired after the 2008 tournament and has hardly played since, instead spending his time working as a coal-miner.
