IT has been a while since Warrington Wolves were as represented in the Super League Dream Team as they are this year.
The annual selection for 2024 contains three Wire players, with Matt Dufty named at full-back and Danny Walker at hooker while Matty Ashton is one of the two wingers.
This year is the seventh time Warrington have had multiple players in the team, but it is the first time this has happened since 2020, when Toby King and Mike Cooper were selected.
On three other occasions have they had three players in the select XIII and indeed, they came three years in a row in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
There is one year, however, in which there were four Wire players in the team – Ryan Atkins, Kurt Gidley, Chris Hill and Ben Currie were all picked in 2016.
As well as 2020, there were also two players in the 2019 team – stand-off Blake Austin and hooker Daryl Clark.
Warrington Wolves players in Super League Dream Teams
The selections of Dufty, Ashton and Walker take the club’s total since the team started being picked in 1996 to 25, which takes them clear of Castleford Tigers in fourth place overall.
However, they still comfortably trail the top three of Leeds Rhinos (57), St Helens (76) and Wigan Warriors (85) who have all dominated the Dream Team through the years.
Paul Sculthorpe was Warrington’s first Dream Team pick in its maiden year of 1996 but of the next 10 teams, only one contained a Wire player when Graham Appo was named in the 2003 side.
Since then, however, it has been a steadier stream and 12 of the past 18 Dream Teams have featured Warrington Wolves representatives.
Ben Westwood is the club’s most “capped” Dream Team player having been in four sides (2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012) closely followed by Chris Hill with three (2012, 2014 and 2016) while Ryan Atkins (2012 and 2016) and Adrian Morley (2009 and 2010) have two each.
Wire’s other one-time representatives are Sculthorpe, Appo, Gidley, Currie, Austin, Clark, King and Cooper as well as Kevin Penny (2007), Matt King (2010), Joel Monaghan, Garreth Carvell (both 2011) and Paul Vaughan (2023).
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here