Leeds Rhinos Shooting Star: Vote now for season's most impressive youngster

Today, the Yorkshire Evening Post is giving readers an opportunity to select which up and coming player receives one of Rhinos’ most prestigious annual honours.

Since it was introduced in 1998, the Yorkshire Evening Post Shooting Star award has recognised the youngster who has made the biggest impact for Rhinos over the past season.

It has been won by some of the greatest names in the club’s recent history and is one of Rhinos’ most coveted individual accolades.

With injuries and suspensions taking their toll throughout the 2022 campaign, a number of young players have had an opportunity at first team level, producing a strong shortlist for this year’s YEP Shooting Star award.

The latest winner will be announced at a ceremony which will be broadcast on Rhinos’ website this autumn and covered in the YEP.

Four players are in contention to be named YEP Shooting Star and votes from readers will determine which of them takes home the coveted prize.

This year, to be nominated, players must be aged 22 or under at the start of the season and not have made a full international appearance for one of the recognised Test-playing nations.

Previous winners of the award, claimed last year by Jack Broadbent, have not been nominated.

This year’s candidates include two Grand Finalists, a Super League young player of the year nominee and a new member of the England Knights squad.

Our first nominee is 18-year-old second-rower Morgan Gannon, from the Siddal community club in Halifax.

Son of former Super League forward Jim Gannon, Morgan was nominated for the Shooting Star award last year, when he made 13 appearances in his debut campaign and was called into the England Knights squad.

He played 25 times this season - scoring six tries - and was shortlisted for the Super League’s best young player award, but missed the Grand Final because of concussion.

The second nominee is 21-year-old forward Jarrod O’Connor, who started at hooker in Rhinos’ Grand Final defeat by St Helens.

Signed from Widnes Vikings’ academy in 2019 as a loose-forward, O’Connor - son of former Wigan and Great Britain star Terry O’Connor - made his Leeds debut two years ago and featured 25 times this season, scoring a vital try in the play-off semi-final win at Wigan Warriors.

Winger Liam Tindall, our third nominee, made his debut against Catalans Dragons at Headingley in 2020, in the same game as O’Connor’s first appearance.

After being selected only one last term and finishing the year on loan at Doncaster, he made a breakthrough this term playing 13 times, including the play-offs at Catalans Dragons and Wigan and proved a talented stand-in for senior wingers Ash Handley and David Fusitu’a.

The 21-year-old’s form during a breakthrough campaign was rewarded with selection for England Knights’ Test against France ‘B’ last weekend.

The final nominee is forward Sam Walters, whose 13 appearances this year included both play-off ties and the Grand Final.

The giant 21-year-old joined Rhinos from Widnes alongside O’Connor and also made his debut against Catalans in 2020.

A pre-season shoulder injury disrupted his start to the campaign, but he returned in Rohan Smith’s first game as coach, away to Salford Red Devils in May and was in or around the matchday squad for the rest of the campaign.

To vote, please email the name of your chosen player – from our list of four nominees – to [email protected] (entering Shooting Star as the email subject).

The player receiving the most votes will win the award.

The closing date for votes is noon on Friday, October 7.