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We’re getting closer to the return of the NRL, with the season-opening trip to Las Vegas six weeks away.
Last week we looked at the coaches feeling the heat in 2025 – now let’s see which players need a bounce-back season to help their team’s finals prospects and also ensure their career remains on the right track.
Entering the final year of his lucrative contract at Manly, there’s no lack of pressure on marquee man Daly Cherry-Evans to improve upon his 2024 form.
His showings for Manly were solid without ever hitting anywhere near his top form as they bombed out in the first week of the finals, and he presided over the Maroons’ 2-1 series loss, including defeat in the decider on home turf, as both captain and chief playmaker for his state.
To continue as Queensland’s best halfback and lead the Sea Eagles to a top-four finish in 2025 Cherry-Evans’ form will need a significant bump.
After an unpleasant off-field incident over the off-season, Sandon Smith will have a point to prove as the Roosters aim for their first premiership since 2019.
With Luke Keary departing for the Super League, and Sam Walker to miss the first few months of the season, it’s a big opportunity for Smith to cement his place in the Roosters’ halves. He struggled in losses to Penrith and Melbourne after coming into the team to partner Keary after Walker went down just before the finals but showed his class in the comfortable semi-final victory over Cronulla.
Plenty of upheaval in Brisbane after an awful 2024 campaign saw the NRL heavyweights miss the finals and Kevin Walters sacked as head coach. New boss Michael Maguire will be hoping Reynolds is able to form a fruitful partnership with Ben Hunt in Ezra Mam’s absence.
Reynolds, 34, is playing in the final year of his contract with the Broncos and is not guaranteed an extension. Age and injury issues will work against his chances of extending his career but there’s no doubt Reynolds still has the quality needed to lead a resurgence at Suncorp Stadium, potentially catching the attention of other clubs.
Following a tumultuous stint in TigerTown, John Bateman heads north to the Cowboys. Coach Todd Payten will be hoping the Englishman can get close to his best in the North Queensland jersey.
Never far away from the headlines, Bateman will do well to keep his head down and try to stay out of the newspapers if his goal is to boost his value for one last NRL pay day after his current deal concludes in 2026. At his best, he is definitely an asset but it remains to be seen if Payten is able to extract much out of the 31-year-old with the Cowboys looking to build on last season’s semi-final exit.
Josh Addo-Carr. (Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)
Still on the right side of 30, there could be plenty of years left in Addo-Carr’s career, as long as he can get rid of his off-field issues and continue to contribute on the field.
His time at the Bulldogs ended on a sour note with the drug-driving incident but Addo-Carr was important as Cameron Ciraldo led Canterbury back to the finals. He was clearly wanted by Jason Ryles and has said all the right things since being recruited by the former enforcer, time will tell if he’s serious about cleaning up his image and how he fares in Ryles’ new-look Eels squad.
Ilias joins Shane Flanagan’s rebuild at the Dragons with a chip on his shoulder after falling down the pecking order and then securing a release from South Sydney.
With his career in a different position to a few years ago when he was Souths’ great hope to replace Adam Reynolds as long-term halfback, Ilias is also coming off a nasty leg injury suffered playing for the Rabbitohs’ reserve grade side. He partners Flanagan’s son, Kyle, in the halves and both will have the added pressure of trying to replace Ben Hunt.
There are a few Bunnies who’ll need to significantly improve their game in 2025 but new recruit Josh Schuster could prove to be a shrewd addition by returning super coach Wayne Bennett.
There was plenty of hype around Schuster when he first broke into the Sea Eagles side and a move the halves was even touted thanks to his ball-playing ability but fitness and injury issues, as well as his high value contract, plagued him before agreeing to a mutual release last year.
Bennett has clearly identified something in the 23-year-old’s game that makes him potentially excellent value for Souths.
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Considering his form at the back end of 2024, it might seem foolish to include Papenhuyzen on this list but there will be a very interesting dynamic in Melbourne this season.
As well as a contentious situation regarding the No.7 jersey at the Storm, there is a clash of new versus (relatively) old at fullback with Papenhuyzen at risk of being usurped by up-and-coming custodian Sua Fa’alogo.
Right now, Papenhuyzen is the better player but will want to put together an injury-free campaign to solidify his spot in Craig Bellamy’s side.
After six seasons with the Titans, Boyd has moved to Mount Smart Stadium, perhaps foreseeing a lack of game time considering Gold Coast’s multiple halves options. A wrist injury hampered the 24-year-old last year, making only nine appearances.
He arrives at a Shaun Jonhson-less Warriors to compete for a spot in the halves with Te Maire Martin, Luke Metcalf and Chanel Harris-Tavita as Andrew Webster’s team look to return to the finals after a disappointing 2024 season.
The 2023 season was Boyd’s best in the NRL, playing 21 games and kicking at 80 per cent from the tee.
Kennedy is not quite at the age (27) where young players typically start nipping at your heels but nevertheless he is in danger of losing the No.1 jersey to rising star Liam Ison at the Sharks.
Unlike star-ladden Penrith and Melbourne, the Sharks don’t boast a star fullback in Kennedy. He’s capable of raising his game but is well behind the likes of Kalyn Ponga, Reece Walsh and James Tedesco in the NRL pecking order.
With the club hungry for premiership success and Ison applying pressure, will Kennedy raise his game?
Hastings is another play known for making headlines, and not always because of his play on the field. He made 16 appearances in the red and blue jersey in 2024 but lost his spot after Round 20, only playing reserve grade for the rest of the season as the Knights were bounced in week one of the finals.
At this point in his career Hastings is a fringe NRL half and is currently behind Phoenix Crossland and Jack Cogger in Adam O’Brien’s hierarchy. Injuries or changes in form will probably allow Hastings another opportunity at some stage, and he’ll have to make the most of it.
(Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)
With a contract extension reportedly worth $800,000 per season kicking in, AJ Brimson heads into the new season without a fully defined role in Des Hasler’s side. Capable of covering a number of positions in the backs but probably best suited to fullback, there’s plenty of competition for the 26-year-old as Hasler boasts one of the more intriguing backlines.
There have been flashes of Brimson’s best, earning him four Maroons caps, now he just needs to put that kind of form together more consistently.
There are a few candidates at Concord but the potential resurgence of Doueihi is an interesting one for Benji Marshall and the Tigers. With the additions premiership winners Jarome Luai and Sunia Turuva, to complement the likes of Lachie Galvin and Jahream Bula, Marshall’s backline is shaping up quite nicely and no longer looks among the worst in the competition.
Staying injury free will be the challenge for the 26-year-old in a contract year after spending a considerable chunk of the 2024 season on the sidelines.
Should he nail down a spot in Marshall’s starting 13 and return to his top form, Doueihi is one of the players who could help Wests return to relevance and challenge for a top-eight finish for the first time 2011.
It’s been a long road back to full fitness for former Maroon Tom Gilbert. The 24-year-old hasn’t played a game since early in the 2023 season, with consecutive injuries plaguing him over the last 18 months.
Returning from an ACL injury is never easy and Gilbert, who has been considered for the Dolphins captaincy, suffered another setback on Wednesday, rolling his ankle in a pre-season session. He must be sick of pre-season training.
Gilbert at his best is undoubtedly an Origin player, but it remains to be seen if he can reach that level again.
Not many options to choose from here, as you might expect from a club which just completed a remarkable four-peat.
In terms of a Panther who’ll see a largely increased role in 2025, Brad Schneider has the considerable task of stepping into NSW Blues five-eighth Jarome Luai’s boots. There are few better halves partners in the NRL than Nathan Cleary but it likely won’t be all smooth sailing for the 23-year-old.
The former South Sydney utility struggled to hold down a starting spot in Cameron Ciraldo’s best 13 after making the move across town to Belmore. Barring injuries, it will likely take a dip in form by one of the established backs for Taaffe to get much of a look in.
With his contract up at the end of the new season, perhaps the Dogs look to extend Taaffe as a depth player and option off the bench but his path to the No.1 jersey is blocked by the rapidly improving Connor Tracey, so he might also assess his options if he’s not able to break through.
Big Corey Horsburgh spent the majority of 2024 in reserve grade, only making four senior appearances all season. After putting in some work he earned his way back to the NRL for the final three games of the campaign as the Raiders narrowly missed out on a finals place despite a strong finish.
Both the 27-year-old and coach Ricky Stuart are extremely stubborn, reportedly not speaking for close to a year after the Canberra legend informed Horsburgh he was dropped from the senior team.
Ostensibly back in Stuart’s good books, 2025 brings a chance for the big bopper to replicate his best.
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