NRL veteran Aaron Woods believes Raiders gun Joseph Tapine has assumed the mantle of the best prop in the game

The 28-year-old has been in unstoppable form for the Green Machine and put in a best-on-ground peformance against the Storm on Saturday in amassing 216 run metres.

“Is Tapine the best prop in the game?” James Hooper asked on the Fox League Podcast.

“At the moment I’d say yes, he’s done it consistently this year and teams are going after him but they can’t stop him and he did it against the Melbourne Storm to down in Melbourne too,” Woods replied.

“That was only four or five weeks ago as well, the form he’s been in is incredible.

“I think last year he was coming off the bench wasn’t he? He couldn’t even get a start.”

Off-contract at the end of the 2023 season, recent rumours have emerged that the Canberra prop is being chased by half a dozen clubs and could very well be the most sought after prop come November 1.

“It shows you when you’re in a good mindset how good he can be,” Woods said.

“I think he’s off-contract too.”

Currently sitting on $750,000 per season and with Tapine on multiple clubs’ radar, Hooper questioned whether the Kiwi representative could hit seven figures on his next contract.


“On that is he worth a million dollars?” Hooper questioned.

“I don’t know what players are worth but I’ll be paying every penny for him he’s outstanding,” Woods replied.

English legend James Graham said Tapine had knocked off Haas on the prop pecking order.

“Yeh I like this he’s taking the mantle of Payne Haas as far as I’m concerned,” Graham told NRL 360.

“He’s been phenomenal all season and for me the main reason behind the Canberra Raiders’ return to the top eight.

“He’s absolutely fantastic, he plays long minutes, he’s got a good offload, his carries are so strong, he’s solid defensively as well he’s in everything that Canberra’s doing right now, he’s been a fantastic player.

“You look last season where he was in and out of the team, coming off the bench he’s nailed down that position.”

The buzz around Tapine didn’t just stop there as Storm legend Cooper Cronk commended his performance against Melbourne.

“I’d have to put Joseph Tapine’s first half against the Storm as one of the best front row performances I’ve seen in a long, long time,” Cronk revealed on The Matty Johns Podcast.

“That offload for Jack Wighton to do his thing that’s elite, that is really good footy.

“His physicality creates quick play the balls but then his ability to create space and offload, I just thought the four best players for the Canberra Raiders were their four leaders.

“Tapine and Papali’i’s second stint was amazing, Jack Wighton was ruthless in the way he went about it and Elliot Whitehead just tackled everything that moved and that just summed up the grit and determination.”