#24 Josh Morris
SPOILER ALERT: Josh Morris is the only Morris brother in my top 30. There will be no cliché grouping the twins right next to each other in the rankings type business here. No slight to Brett Morris who is a fantastic player in his own right and had a very strong 2012 season looking dangerous when moved into the number 1 jumper, but to me the performance of Josh in 2012 has, for now moved him slightly ahead of his brother.
Brother Brett's exclusion will no doubt be a heart breaker.
The 2012 year was a phenomenal one for the 26 year old centre, as was the case for many of his Dogs team mates. A Grand Final appearance, playing in all three Origins for New South Wales, tied for 4th in the NRL in tries, tied for 6th in line breaks, 11th in tackle busts, wrapping it up with winning the Dally M Centre of the Year award for the second time. The 184 cm, 94 kg speedster has now amassed 81 tries in his 133 NRL appearances, 3 tries in his 2 appearances for Australia, and 3 tries in his 5 appearances for New South Wales. He has graduated into being one of the clear cut elite centres in the game.
Sorry Lote mate, maybe ten years ago.
The try Morris scores in this video is a perfect example of the incredible threat that he is on attack. His great strength and ability to bust through the line on display as he completely steam rolls the poor bloke who was unfortunate enough to get in his way, then once he makes it over the speed bump, he's off. It seems Josh is often overlooked when it comes to discussions of the fastest guys in the game, but he's certainly up there, his legs are almost a blur as he chews down the metres of the field. He's not the least bit shy in exploiting his speed either, so often the ball is spread out to his side, and then it's go time. He'll put on a little move, a slight hesitation to get his defender questioning him, you have to be prepared for the chance he might come straight at you, but then he takes you outside and he's off up the sideline and you're turning around trying to give chase while his winger has cut back inside waiting for Josh to draw in the fullback. Or maybe he just busts straight through the line, hitting the ball at pace from an offload of one of the many hulking Bulldogs forwards, he pierces the line with such speed and strength and once he gets through, you aren't running him down.
This seems as good a point as any to put this photo in
As dangerous as Josh can be taking on the line with the ball in hand, perhaps his greatest trait is his play in support. While some guys have a "nose for the line" Josh seems to have a "nose for the play that will lead to a try". Of course, on the Bulldogs plenty of these opportunities develop, but Morris is an absolute master of being in the right place at the right time, keeping up with the ball, keeping up with the play. That isn't to say that he simply roams the field leeching tries, he keeps with the play when few others can, he's the guy that can catch up and support a team mate who has made a surprise break, he's the guy who will chase down the kick you've stabbed through. Doing a good job in support may sound simple, but it's easier said than done, you need the smarts to understand when and how plays are going to develop, as well as the physical ability to be able to get up with the play on the fly, especially if you are playing with this guy...
OK Josh, I guess you can have this one
You can see Morris in this video as soon as he sees Barba take off, he turns on the jets to get up with him, waiting, trying to maintain his pace but not overrunning the potential pass, waiting until boom, Barba gives him the ball and he's away to the races. So much of the spotlight shone on Ben Barba for all of the Bulldogs amazing exploits in 2012, and rightfully so, but for so many of Barba's breaks, Josh Morris was there in support to finish them off. Despite being recognized as the centre of the year, it felt like Morris's performances flew under the radar because Barba was busy wowing us every week. Make no mistake about it however, Morris was an extremely important part of what made the Bulldogs the offensive dynamos that they were.
Just know that I will be leading the comp in tries
Fortunately, video highlight supplies of Josh Morris were much more bountiful than Aaron Woods. Check back in tomorrow as we march on to 23 more sleeps to NRL 2013 and single digit sleeps until the Charity Shield! RT's, comments, criticisms, general jibber jabber, feel free to hit up the comment sections or get at me on Twitter @WellsNorthShore
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