Danny Houghton has been named the 2016 Man of Steel, becoming the first Hull FC player to win the British game’s most prestigious individual award in its near 40-year history.
The hooker, who has been exceptional for Hull in a season during which they have won the Challenge Cup and made the play-off semi-finals, saw off competition from his team-mate Gareth Ellis and the Castleford winger Denny Solomona to win the award.
Houghton secured the award after a ballot of almost 300 Super League players, with the 28-year-old getting almost twice as many first-choice votes as Ellis, who finished second. Hull’s Super League season ended in defeat against Wigan last Friday in the play-offs but Houghton is now in the running to be named in Wayne Bennett’s England squad for the Four Nations, which will be announced next Monday.
For the first time the RFL opted to make the voting process for the award public, with details of all 288 voting forms revealed. Houghton voted for the Warrington captain, Chris Hill, as his Man of Steel, while Ellis voted for Hill’s team-mate, Daryl Clark. The third-placed Solomona, who scored a record-breaking 40 tries this season, agreed with the majority of the voting field, picking Houghton first and Ellis second.
Houghton’s win was one half of a double success for the hooker on the night: he also retained the Super League “Hit Man” award after making the most tackles again this season.
Hull’s Lee Radford, was named the Super League Coach of the Year, as voted for by his fellow top-flight coaches. The Wakefield winger Tom Johnstone was named the Young Player of the Year, beating the Widnes forward Matt Whitley and Wigan prop Ryan Sutton to the award by a single vote. Johnstone, who made his professional debut only last year, is the club’s top try-scorer in 2016, having scored 14 in 22 appearances.
The Hull centre Kirk Yeaman, who retired from rugby league following the defeat by Wigan, was one of 12 current or former Super League players honoured at the ceremony in Manchester in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the game.
Hit Man Danny Houghton (Hull FC), 1289 tackles; Top metre maker Chris Hill (Warrington), 3983m; Top try-scorer Denny Solomona (Castleford), 40 tries; Top Gun Marc Sneyd (Hull FC), 83% conversion rate; Outstanding contribution Gregory Mounis, Iafeta Paleaaesina, Jamie Langley, Kirk Yeaman, Luke Dorn, Luke Robinson, Pat Richards, Paul Jackson, Paul Wood, Richard Mathers, Stuart Littler, Wayne Godwin; Foundation of the Year Widnes Vikings; Super League Club of the Year Hull FC; Super League Young Player of the Year Tom Johnstone (Wakefield); Super League Coach of the Year Lee Radford (Hull FC); Man of Steel Danny Houghton (Hull FC).
.jpg?w=600)
