Is the gap between forwards and backs closing? How much does size really matter?

At first glance, size doesn’t dictate ladder position. The Panthers, Roosters, Cowboys and Bulldogs all finished in the top six in 2024, but their forwards don’t crack the top 10 weight-wise.

Although height and weight are important factors in each position, there are numerous other qualities to consider, according to Melbourne Storm recruitment manager Paul Bunn.

“The criteria that everyone’s looking for [in forwards] is fast legs, mobility, endurance – it’s a different package today,” Bunn says.

One major reason players have slimmed down is the rule changes which have led to the erosion of size differences between backs and forwards. The six-again rule scrapped penalties for minor ruck infringements in favour of a set restart, aimed at speeding up the game.

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This means players become more fatigued as the game wears on, which favours fitter, speedier, more dynamic players who can cope with the faster pace of the game. In short, the rule tweaks have caused a shift towards smaller forwards.

The nimble footwork and quick play of lighter locks such as Cameron Murray, who unfortunately for South Sydney will miss most of this season due an Achilles tendon injury, offers a point of difference to the traditional big-bodied forward more suited to winning the big collisions.

Murray, at 96kg, weighs eight kilos less than the average NRL lock, but that hasn’t stopped the Rabbitohs captain from achieving representative honours and being named lock of the year at the 2019 Dally M awards.

“A big, cumbersome, six-foot-five [inch player] with no speed, lack of mobility, and no footwork is not much good,” Bunn said. “If forwards aren’t resilient with endurance they can fade out quick because they’re too overweight and too big.

“Forwards now are much more compact, fast legs, rather than big, cumbersome, plenty of weight type forwards – they’re just about out of the game.”

Interestingly, the Panthers are at the lower end of the pack in terms of average height and weight.

But their compact size and versatility are among the keys to the Panthers’ success. Winger Brian To’o epitomises this, standing at 182cm tall and weighing 82kg.

“He’s your outlier of what the typical specs are, and by all reports he would tick a hell of a lot of other boxes as well,” Bunn said.

“He’s a battering ram – he gets the ball, and he runs at 100 miles an hour on top of people,” said Dr Steve Georgakis, a senior lecturer at the University of Sydney who runs a course on rugby league.

“When the forwards need to bring the ball up, and they get a little tired, he acts as an extra forward where he’ll just get the ball in the first couple of tackles and bring it up like a battering ram. But then when he gets the ball on the wing, he goes hard and fast with his weight and speed.”

So, what else matters?

Bunn says attitude, rather than raw power and size, and how a player conducts themselves on and off the field, are paramount.

“You get a few rotten apples, it’ll rock the whole case, so be very careful with that,” he said. “You’ve got to look at the skill set required by that position, but there’s overriding things like character, and then you look at their resilience. Are they coachable? Do they fit into your system and the way you want to play and the head coach wants to play? What sort of person are they?”

Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold agrees that teams now place far more emphasis on skills, football intelligence and character.

“They look at the technical, tactical, the physical, the mental, and so on,” Seibold says. “They also work a lot on the connection of the group.”

He attributes the Panthers’ success to the cohesion between players and says unity among the playing group can be what makes or breaks a club.

“If you look at Penrith, a lot of them have been playing together since they were 16 years old, so the amount of shared experiences, the amount of times they’ve played together on the field is extraordinarily high,” Seibold said.

“And so it’s that understanding, relationship building, and shared experiences that from what I can see, is really crucial.”

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