Brits Down Under: Whitehead impressive, Canberra suffer Hodgson blow & Thompson makes Bulldogs bow

After round nine of the 2020 NRL season we take another look at the performances and stats of the league’s British contingent.

Luke Thompson

The 25-year-old started his first ever NRL game for Canterbury on Saturday against Brisbane and although it may have ended in a defeat, the explosive forward still showed exactly what he can do after putting in plenty of work defensively. The former Saints man’s 34 tackles were the third most by a Bulldogs player throughout the game and Thompson put up a steady 88 metres from 10 carries.

George Williams

The Raiders fell short against Melbourne at the weekend as they slipped to seventh on the ladder. The 25-year-old has been one of Canberra’s shining lights this year as he leads the Raiders in try assists this season but they have still come up short in the win department recently as they registered their fourth loss in six games over the weekend. In the game against the Storm, Williams ran for 45 metres while making 18 tackles in the process. As we go into round ten, the former Wigan half-back will face one of his biggest NRL tests to date as he faces the Sydney Roosters on Thursday.

Ryan Hall

The Roosters were at their clinical best against North Queensland after scoring six tries in 20 minutes and leaving the Cowboys red faced in the process. Despite their offensive onslaught, Hall continues to wait for that first ever NRL try but he did come close this time round as he crossed the line, only for it to be called back by the referee for an infringement in the process. He continues to see plenty of the ball and rack up the metres. In total, the powerhouse winger made 120 metres from 12 carries. Over the course of three games he is also averaging almost 150 metres per game.

Josh Hodgson

As the Raiders continue to struggle to find some form of consistency in attack, their Premiership hopes were dealt a huge blow on Sunday as their worst fears were realised with Hodgson looking set to miss the rest of the season after suffering an ACL injury in the loss to Melbourne. The inspirational hooker will be a huge miss for Canberra as up until his injury he was leading the way in tackles for the Raiders while continuing to showcase himself as one of the main offensive catalysts alongside Jack Wighton and George Williams. The 30-year-old tore his ACL back at the 2017 World Cup which forced him to miss the start of the 2018 season, but the dynamic dummy half came back stronger than ever and the Canberra faithful will no doubt be hoping for a similar recovery this time round.

Herbie Farnworth

After a six-game losing streak the Broncos finally broke their drought after a comprehensive win over Canterbury on Saturday. The 20-year-old slotted in at centre once again and although he did not find himself on the scoresheet this time, the Lancastrian put in a steady amount of work after running for 89 metres from 11 carries while racking up 15 tackles to his name.

Elliott Whitehead

The Raiders might be struggling to consistently get a win as of late but Whitehead has been one of his side’s biggest positives so far this year and in the defeat against Melbourne he recorded 112 metres, 20 tackles and a line break. So far this year, Whitehead has the most line breaks, the joint second most tries by a Canberra player and sits just behind behind Hodgson for the most tackles by a member of the Canberra squad.

Tom Burgess

The Rabbitohs struggled to click into gear earlier on in the season but recently they have been starting to show how good they can be and that was certainly evident against the Tigers last week after the Souths scored three tries in 25 minutes to take the win. During their recent good form, Burgess has certainly been a driving force in the forward pack, and he continues to pile on the metres with another 100-metre display as he ended the game with 127 from 16 carries. The 28-year-old also had the joint third most tackles by a Rabbitohs player with 30.

Ryan Sutton

The 25-year-old continues to put in plenty of productive work from the Raiders interchange after putting up 62 metres and 25 tackles in the loss to the Storm on Saturday. The former Wigan man certainly puts in plenty of effort when he is in action for the Raiders. After five games, Sutton averages just over 80 metres and around 26 tackles per game as he looks to continue to push himself into England and World Cup contention for 2021.

Watch NRL and live stream every NRL game to keep up with how Tom Burgess, John Bateman, Ryan Sutton, Elliott Whitehead and George Williams and all the others are getting on Down Under.

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