You're always going to do pretty well when your play makers are two of the best in the NRL. They don't just rank among the best in the 'young' player category, they rank very high on the list of NRL players in general. Both have played for their respective countries and have enjoyed great success in their short careers. For Manly, Kieran Foran and Daly Cherry-Evans are exceptional. With the arrival of the next 'Joey' in Luke Brooks this season, the consistent form of DCE and Foran must rank them pretty close to being ranked as future greats.

First of all we'll start with the fact that they both love to defend and play physically. They intimidate. The shot Kieran Foran put on Billy Slater on the weekend after chasing a kick is evidence of this. Foran loves to smash blokes which ensures that when teams try to attack down an edge, Foran is up in their grill making them either second guess their move, or reconsider their career as they lay prone on the pitch. They are both big enough to be able to handle the big boys constantly thrown their way. Let's not forget that DCE came on at lock in Origin. In Origin people. DCE, the Manly halfback proved himself tough as nails in the toughest environment. To be known as a great, you must not only be able to handle yourself defensively, but you must thrive on it. These two thoroughly enjoy it.

If you're going to be a half for Manly, you have to be an extremely smart player. You have to have a feel for momentum, know when your boys are under the pump and be able to realise when your opposition are under the pump. While these traits might be important for any half, Manly like to impose themselves on their opposition defensively much more than any other NRL team. This means that DCE and Foran need to be able to dictate proceedings with their kicking games, whether it be through a whopper of a kick early in the tackle count or a cheeky grubber in to the corner when not much his happening on attack.

Their football smarts goes beyond their kicking games however. There aren't too many halves combinations who work as fluidly together as these two. The only combination who could possibly rival them is the Maloney/Pearce combo at the Roosters. Both DCE and Foran know their roles exceptionally. There's no egos, no over playing your hand just do your job very very well. They each run an edge with plenty of weapons at their disposal. DCE knows that he can choose from either Glenn Stewart, Brett Stewart or Jamie Lyon which must make it difficult to decide who to give it to and when. Hence why he gets the big bucks and I don't. Each player he distributes the ball to also has a couple of options (Glenn Stewart running a direct line or doing some creating himself for example) so DCE must ensure that the right option is taken consistently.

Kieran Foran on the other hand plays a bit differently. His options aren't limited as such, but they are a lot more clear cut. He can either give Steve Matai early ball, set up a line for Justin Horo to run, putting in a grubber to build some pressure or run the ball himself. Foran doesn't over play the fancy stuff that works on the right edge, he just sticks to what he and his left edge comrades are good at. Foran loves to mix it up with the big boys which keeps defences guessing as he is equally as threatening running the ball as he is setting up his mates. This ensures that whatever option he takes, there is a benefit. Should he run the ball, he can get a quick play the ball as defenders aren't able to gang up on him because of the threats around him. Should he play distributor, defences are kept guessing as to who provides the biggest threat and must account for Foran running the ball then switch their focus to the others around him.

It staggers me that both these two are constantly left out of many discussions as to who are our future greats. Foran and DCE are both head and shoulders above any other young halves at the moment. A quick comparison with Shaun Johnson makes for pretty tough reading as Johnson lacks the ability to add classy touches when finishing sets and picking the right options. We must remember that Manly had a pretty great half already in Trent Hodkinson before he left to the Bulldogs. DCE was toiling away in the Queensland Cup and went from there straight into a starting NRL halfback spot. Both he and Foran will be remembered as two of the best halves ever produced.