TRU's Position Watch - Fly-Halves

The spotlight is on the Aviva Premiership’s fly-halves this week and with all of the players in the top six having legitimate claims on the number one spot, there is no doubt that these have been the hardest rankings to discern thus far.

Tom Catterick and Andy Goode, both of whom have been excellent over the last few months, miss out, as does potential future England fly-half Henry Slade, who has found himself employed almost exclusively as an outside centre in the 2014/15 season. Freddie Burns also eludes recognition despite touring New Zealand with England last summer and an under-performing James Hook is ousted, too, in an extremely talent-rich position group.

8. Gareth Steenson, Exeter Chiefs
Steenson sneaks in ahead of the likes of Burns and Goode and is the perfect example of why clubs promoted from the The Championship should show faith with the players that got them to the top tier of English rugby, unlike the worrying precedent set by London Welsh this season. Steenson has been with the Chiefs since 2008 and played a vital role in helping them achieve promotion to the Premiership. Since then, Steenson has blossomed, becoming one of the most consistent performers at the position in the league.

7. Owen Williams, Leicester Tigers
The Welsh fly-half struggled for game time at the Scarlets, stuck behind Rhys Priestland in the pecking order, but since moving to Leicester, has been afforded the opportunity to show his undoubted talent. His form has seen him cement himself as the Tigers’ first-choice fly-half, usurping the role that Burns was expected to fill following his move from Gloucester. Leicester’s injury crisis this season has prevented them from reaching the heights expected of them but Williams has done a very admirable job with less talent around him than he can expect in the future.

6. Danny Cipriani, Sale Sharks
For years in the NFL, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has been making players around him look better because of his intelligence and ability and to some extent; the same is true of Cipriani. His ability to spot an overlap a phase or two down the line or a dog leg in defence 20-30 metres away from his position, allow him to exploit defences with a fairly average supporting cast. No disrespect is intended towards the Sale squad, who are certainly a team on the up, but they do not have the abundance of talent that a Bath or Saracens do and Cipriani certainly helps negate that factor. Cipriani’s defence is not as bad as some will have you believe, but his consistency in that area is not at the same level as those above him, ultimately seeing him slip to sixth.

5. Stephen Myler, Northampton Saints
One of England’s most underrated players of the last decade, Myler is unlucky not to have picked up more than his three caps since he transitioned to Union back in 2006. The former Rugby League player rarely, if ever, has a bad game and he guides Saints’ lethal and cohesive back line with poise and finesse. Myler might not regularly reach the heights of those yet to come, but he is as well-balanced as any of his contemporaries and due to the fact he is usually available during international windows, he is perhaps the most valuable fly-half in the Premiership.

4. Owen Farrell, Saracens
Coming off the back of an injury, Farrell had a below par autumn for England and a lack of playing time at fly-half since for Saracens has seen him fall a spot or two from where he would have been had these rankings occurred last season. Since the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia in 2013, Farrell has made huge strides in developing as a playmaker, taking the ball to the gain line with regularity, but his decision-making still lets him down at times in these situations. Time is on the 23-year olds’ side however, and he should soon be pushing for a spot higher up in this list. After all, he is arguably already the best defensive and goal kicking fly-half in the Premiership.

3. George Ford, Bath Rugby
Ford capitalised well on Farrell’s injury and rustiness this autumn, usurping England’s 10 jersey and putting in accomplished performances against both Samoa and Australia. His form in the Premiership for Bath has been at a consistently high level, too, though his goal kicking does have a tendency to go astray from time to time. Playing inside prodigious talents like Kyle Eastmond and Jonathan Joseph certainly helps Ford excel, but the composure and variation that Ford plays with is 100% attributable to him. Regardless of who wins the duel between Ford and Farrell for the starting berth at the 2015 Rugby World Cup, there can be little doubt that England’s future at fly-half looks very rosy.

2. Nick Evans, Harlequins
In a world bereft of Dan Carter, Evans would have 70-odd caps for the All Blacks by now. Carter does exist however, and that has certainly been a huge boon for Quins over the last seven years. No player has been as instrumental to the London-based side’s style or success over that period as Evans has been. There have been signs that Evans is declining and given he is now 34 years of age, that is hardly surprising, but he continues to unlock Premiership defences with ruthless abandon.

1. Charlie Hodgson, Saracens
These rankings were the toughest yet to put together, with every player ranked sixth or higher having a valid claim on the number one spot, but Hodgson, who currently holds the record for most Premiership points of all-time, ultimately emerges at the top. It’s a shame that Hodgson was never able to replicate his stellar Premiership form at the international level, although admittedly, following in the footsteps of Jonny Wilkinson would have been an unenviable task for anyone. Even at 34, Hodgson maintains the high standards he set earlier in his career at Sale, punishing defences with a balanced and varied style that is extremely hard to defend against. He plays with a savvy that in theory should make him an excellent coach should he decide to go down that route, but if what we’ve seen so far this season is anything to go by, there’s still plenty left in the tank for Hodgson on the pitch.