Which are the best players from the dark side to grace our game.
There have been some belters like Offiah,Boston,Davies,Coslett and so on.
For me(and this is going of my Dad)I will go for Tom Van Vollenhoven,who is your best,thoughts please.

1. dally messenger
2. chris mckivat

going forward :

3. ray price
4. ricky stuart


uk :

1. trevor forster
2. davies

cant think of any more

Van Vollenhoven was a great winger, but Boston was greatest player, and along with Alex Murphy the best player I have ever seen because they were brilliant in many different positions.

Other great converts Jim Sullivan (probably the best) but I never saw him play and he was a coach supreme, Lewis Jones, Trevor Lake, Kel Coslett, John Mantle, Johnny Freeman, Colin Dixon, David Watkins and John Bevan.

Shem Tatupu

Wally Lewis

(light the blue touch paper and retire to a safe distance)

Has to be Paul Franze.

Didn't he start out in rugby league, then also play union before playing only league... and going on to become the legend that he is?

All us cas fans know for certain there has been no better raa raa come to league than Paul Franze.

Ryan Cross and Garrick Morgan.

yeah wally lewis was a RU player.

lewis was a RL junior. he played junior RL 5 years before he tried union, and he never stopped playing RL.

for a couple of years he went to an exclusive school where RL wasnt played so he also played union, in conjunction with RL on the weekend

went on a wallabies schoolboy tour to GB whilst still being a RL junior before and after

found union boring and threw it in

but because he was so good the union trolls claim him as one of their own

the way it works it :

if you play 1 year of RU as a junior this overrides any number of years playing RL

basically in australia 80 - 90% of the kids who play union as juniors also play league because we are the dominant sport

RL isnt played in exclusive schools, its only union and soccer so some try it in school, but still play RL on the weekends

many current wallabies had extensive RL junior careers

Craig Innes played in two grand finals with Manly and was a former all black

Matthew Ridge (watch the hate come on now) pretty much similar

For example Rocky Elsom (Wobbilies flanker) played in the same Jersey Flegg side as Jonathon Thurston, Matt Utai and Roy Asotasi

rocky elsom and wycliff palu were basically nrl reserve graders who were pushed out from their clubs because they had no future in RL

they readily got a S14 contract and then played for the wallabies

heck elsom has even captained them

failed nrl player = wallaby captain!

good call on ridge he was a fantastic convert

Elsom was a Rugby Union junior, and went to a Rugby Union school. I'd guess he decided to play Flegg because he could earn more money and a receive a quality football education at that level, moreso than playing Brisbane/Sydney club colts or as a S14 academy contracted player. Once he became too old for Flegg, Elsom may have decided to return to Rugby because a) it was his original code and b) he would get the opportunity to play international Rugby Union.

[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Elsom#CareerRocky Elsom's junior career[/url



OTOH, the Sporting Life article referenced on Wycliff Palu's wiki page said that he struggled to crack FG at the Dragons, but it is also possible that his jail sentence for a nightclub altercation may have ended his RL career, and forced him to switch back to Union.

since you dont know much about the nrl ill help you

elsom was told by his clubs the dogs to forget about RL, and that union was his sport

his body was totally unsuited to RL and they told him to go back to union where he captained his country

palu was another convert to RL who came over fat and slow and after 1 offseason with the dragons we got him into shape

he failed to crack first grade and the waratahs offered him better money, clearly he had no future in the NRL

the waratahs coach even praised the dragons for getting him fit

its not surprising 2 failed NRL players make the highest level in union

pretty much all our stars went to union and made a massive impact straight away

to be expected given our training systems

Elsom played league on the weekend for Noosa Pirates

Jonathon Davies did so much for RL it was riduculus. The guy didn't shine as much for Cardiff as he did for widnes, then he went to a very poorwire and nearly scared Wigan in93-4, but to top, remember that try at wembely, when we were a man down and we as a nation needed some magic...... It didn't come from betts, joynt, Farrell, Connolly, steadman,.... It took a former RU player to get around the best full back at the time....,, (which offiah couldn't do)....(mullens) and prob one of the greatest try's in a GB shirt scored at wembley....... Say what u want at RU. But some of thier greatest players came from league and some of our greatest players came from RU

just a question please DM :

watched Greg White play his first game for TO13 yesterday - I believe he is ex Warringah Rats & Manly Marlin RU winger - do you know about him ? Apparently it was his frst ever RL game at any great level ? Did ok by the way - played second half,strting off as RW then going to FB and looked decent

sorry never heard of him

Davies better and more memorable than than David Watkins? a limited viewpoint

Surely Ricky Stuart has exactly the same credentials as you say Wally Lewis has as a convert. The only exception being Stuart signed after being a full international

Lewis Jones still holds the record for points scored for Leeds, from a time where the try was worth 3. That tells you a little about the great man.

David Watkins
Martin Offiah
Tom Van Vollenhoven
Jonathan Davies
Billy Boston
Keith Fielding
Maurice Richards
Brian Jefferson






Garfield Owen






Colin Evans






Terry O'Brian






Les Thomas






Stuart Gallagher







and loads more who have been involved with "The Greatest Game" over the years after moving from union.