CNK shades Papi, Teddy in VB Hard Earned fullback battle
In some eyes, Ryan Papenhuyzen edged closer to the title of the game's best fullback after his stunning four-try haul against the Broncos on Friday.
To others, Roosters champion James Tedesco remains on another level in an era of outstanding custodians. He was in fine form during a win over the Warriors and scored his seventh try in four games.
But in VB Hard Earned terms, Raiders star Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad overshadowed all No.1s with an index score of 100 in round four.
Nicoll-Klokstad put in a huge shift to help his team beat the Titans 20-4 on Saturday. According to VB data, CNK had 28 runs (21 being for eight or more metres) and collected 275m overall while busting 10 tackles and making six of his own, including a try-saver.
Those numbers allowed him to pip Papenhuyzen's score of 99. The speedster got plenty of the ball with 25 runs (13 for eight or more metres), 256m overall, nine tackle-breaks and nine supports.
Both men easily transcended the Baseline of Hard Work - the average index score for a fullback is only 47.6.
There was a gap back to Tedesco (56) in third place among custodians. His Roosters teammate Angus Crichton (103) recorded the highest score of the round in a tireless second-rower's performance.
Another standout was Titans prop Tino Fa'asuamaleaui (95). Moved from lock to the front-row for the past two weeks, the ex-Storm forward played an impressive 71 minutes against Canberra.
Knights prop David Klemmer has kept the top spot on the overall leaderboard but workhorse Penrith front-rower James Fisher-Harris is in close pursuit. With Klemmer in doubt for round five after suffering a knee injury, Fisher-Harris could soon surpass him.
Gold Coast second-rower David Fifita has rocketed into third after scoring 93 on the weekend while lock Ryan Sutton has relished a starting role at the Raiders and shot to fourth.
