#29 Kieran Foran
Let me get one thing out of the way early, this guy may just be the biggest whiner in the whole competition. The next call against Manly that Foran agrees with will be the first, but the 22 year old Kiwi international five-eight is pound for pound one of the toughest players in the competition. Capable of also playing at halfback or centre, Foran's young career already features a premiership win with Manly, international honours and will be appearing in this years All Star game. His 2011 season saw him as a legitimate threat for the Dally M Medal throughout the year, but his part in the infamous brawl with Melbourne rendered him ineligible. Unfortunately, Foran's stellar 2011 year was followed up by a hampered 2012 which saw him missing games or appearing in a noticeably reduced capacity.
When fully healthy however, Foran in combination with halves partner Daly Cherry-Evans are the best 6-7 combo in the business. While Foran may not have the playmaking and kicking ability of the likes of Cherry-Evans or Cooper Cronk, he's certainly no mug, but he also brings an element that few others in his position bring to the table in his rugged, tenacious efforts on defense. Foran stands just 180cm tall in a competition loaded with monsters and hovers around 90kg, but plays like he's the biggest man on the field. While some halves shy away from the more physical aspects of the game, Foran embraces it. It may sound strange, but even as a Kiwi, I at times wish Foran was Australian, only because I would love to see him in the Origin environment. When Gould prattles on about what makes an "Origin player", he's talking about the traits that Kieran Foran possesses, this guy was tailor made for Origin, except for the whole being from Australia thing (which actually matters now thankfully). Foran doesn't care if you're Kasiano or Tony Williams, he'll still step up and put his body on the line to stop you, though unfortunately his rugged playing style may be his undoing and lead to more injury concerns, when he's healthy he's a soldier that any team would love marching out for them and proves the perfect halves partner for his buddy DCE
Check in tomorrow for #28 in my countdown towards the 2013 NRL season, as always if you have any comments, criticisms, suggestions, or you just want a chin wag about the greatest game of all, leave a message in the comments for get at me on Twitter @WellsNorthShore
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