We're a month into the 2022 NRL season and the calendar has flicked over from March to April, so it's time to check in with the Stats Insider Team of the Month.

How is the Stats Insider Team of the Month Selected?

Based on Stats Insider’s NRL Player Ratings, a player’s game by game ratings (when named to start in each position) are added together for the relevant month. The players with the highest overall rating in each position are then selected in the Team of the Month.

Outside of players named to start on the interchange bench, players are only eligible to score in the position they were named to start the match. Halves are also grouped into a single position for selection purposes.

So, who cracks it this month?

Stats Insider's Team of the Month (March, 2022)

1. Ryan Papenhuyzen

6 tries
3 try assists
15 tackle breaks
4 line breaks
144 running metres per game

Ryan Papenhuyzen is back to his best following his concussion-affected 2021 season. Showing no signs of caution or unease, the 23-year-old is again hitting gaps at lightning speed and taking the line on with reckless abandon. Jahrome Hughes, Cameron Munster and Harry Grant make for an elite trio, but Papenhuyzen's speed and constant threat takes them to another level. 

The scary thing: This Storm spine has only started two games together so far in 2022.

Punters- At TopSport, Ryan Papenhuyzen is now a $5.7 favourite to be the NRL's top try scorer this season. 

2. Daniel Tupou

Daniel Tupou has long been one of the most consistent wingers in the NRL. He often pops up in the Stats Insider Team of the Month but rarely features in conversations around the competition's top wingers. 

The 30-year-old leads all wingers in total yardage with 688 metres in four games (172m) to be 4th in the NRL overall in total running metres. He's picked up three tries already this season and pushed one back into the hands of Paul Momirovski for a try assist in Round 4.

Keep doing your thing, Daniel. The Stats Insider Player Ratings see you.

Punters- At TopSport, you can get $13 about Daniel Tupou leading the league for total tries in 2022. 

3. Izack Tago

He played six games last season so doesn't qualify for Rookie of the Year honours, but we're calling 2022 the start of Izack Tago's NRL career, and what a start it has been.

With four tries in as many games, Tago is filling the try-scoring void left by Matt Burton who departed for the Bulldogs over the summer. A year earlier it was Stephen Crichton dotting down for fun. While the Panthers left edge attack is one of the friendliest spots on the field to attack from, you still need to be in the right spot at the right time and running the right lines to make the most of it.

At 19-year-old and only ten games into his career, Tago looks every bit like a long-term NRL centre and his combination with Viliame Kikau will only improve as the season goes on.

Punters- At TopSport, Tago's Panthers are paying $3.7 to back-to-back champs in 2022.

4. Dane Gagai

Dane Gagai took a bath against Siosifa Talakai in Round 4, but up until then, he played like the State of Origin centre the Knights hoped to see when he returned to the club for this season. 

Gagai's moments with the ball have been particularly effective for the 31-year-old to lead the competition in tackle breaks with 23 through four rounds. Those tackle-breaks have led to two tries and 140 running metres per game, but perhaps most notably, three try assists. Gagai has been putting them on a plate for young winger Dom Young outside him with the experienced centre having a significant impact on his transition into regular first-grade football. 

Punters- At TopSport, the Knights are paying $2.45 to play finals for a 3rd straight season. 

5. Taylan May

Unlike Tago inside him, Taylan May is already a huge part of the Rookie of the Year discussion.

He has stepped in for arguably the best winger in the game in Brian To'o and not looked out of place for a second to score five tries in three games while running for 183 metres per game. The tries are one thing; he has finished well in the corner on the back of moments of brilliance from Viliame Kikau and Jarome Luai earlier in the action. However, it's the 183 metres that are most impressive. Especially when you're filling in for the best yardage winger in rugby league.

To'o is expected to return from his knee injury in Round 9. If the 19-year-old continues to perform like this - particularly in yardage - Charlie Staines might be the one that makes way.

Punters- At TopSport, the Panthers are paying $1.95 to win the minor premiership.

6. Nicho Hynes

Welcome to the halves, Nicho Hynes.

Plenty had their doubts about him taking on so much responsibility following his move from the Storm to the Sharks over the off-season. The lazy 'Storm players don't play well elsewhere' narrative popped up here and there, too.

In reality, Hynes has played like one of the best halfbacks in the competition to start the season and doesn't look out of place at the position or with the responsibility.

He's playing on the ball to average 64 touches per game (3rd-most of all non-hookers in the NRL). For context, he's touching the ball at roughly the same rate as recognised organising halfbacks Daly Cherry-Evans (66.8), Ben Hunt (66.3) and Nathan Cleary (62.0).

Hynes has scored a try, handed out three others, assisted on five line breaks, thrown eight offloads, forced two dropouts and run for 93 metres per game. We're yet to see him tested against an elite defence, but Hynes looks the part at the moment. 

Punters- At TopSport, the Sharks are paying $2.45 to finish top-4 in 2022.

7. Mitchell Moses

Mitchell Moses is a polarising player for a variety of reasons. However, there can be no denying his ability when he's in-form and he is the in-form halfback in the NRL right now.

A 24-point performance against the Dragons in Round 4 capped off an excellent month of football for the 27-year-old. His combination with Dylan Brown is much-improved on last season as the pair play the Eels into the best attack in the competition scoring 31 points per game.

Moses leads all players in points with 48 after four rounds. His two try assists against the Dragons took him up to seven for the season - also the most in the competition.

The Eels still have a way to go if they're to catch up to the genuine premiership contenders, but Moses can get them there if he keeps playing like this.

Punters- At TopSport, the Eels are paying $3.5 to qualify for their first Grand Final since 2009.

8. Payne Haas

Another Stats Insider Team of the Month, another appearance for Payne Haas.

He has been in the headlines for the wrong reasons recently but he continues to dominate on the field for an inconsistent Broncos side.

As he has done throughout his whole career, Haas is eating metres to average 171 per game through four rounds. It's post-contact where he is making a big dent, though. Haas leads all players in total post-contact metres with 308.2m so far this season.

His contract is in the news. He has just been caught on video tickling the chin of a teammate at the pub. There are concerns for Haas off the field but you know exactly what he's going to do for the 80 minutes on it every week.

Punters- At TopSport, the Broncos are $3 to finish the 2022 home and away season as the highest ranked QLD team.

9. Damien Cook

Damien Cook doesn't need to be darting from behind the ruck to score highlight-reel tries every week to be playing well. He is without a try after four rounds but his 28 dummy-half runs lead the competition. Cook has managed 75 running metres per game behind those dummy-half runs - up from 67 metres per game last season.

But it's in defence that Cook has earned his spot here.

The Rabbitohs hooker's 198 tackles at 49.5 per game is the most of any player in the NRL. He has only missed six along the way for a 96.1% tackle efficiency.

His Bunnies side are struggling through games on the back of their NRL-high 56 errors. If they can clean that up and Cook continues to be active from behind the ruck, it won't be long before we see one of those tries in the highlight-reels for the week.

Punters- At TopSport, the Bunnies are paying $3.3 to finish top-4 for a 4th time in 5 seasons.

10. Addin Fonua-Blake

To still dominate in spite of poor direction from his coach is a testament to Addin Fonua-Blake's start to the 2022 NRL season.

The Warriors have looked too wide too early and asked him to move the ball more than he should be given his skillset. He's one of the best carriers of the ball through the middle in the NRL with his late footwork at the line often getting his side another four or five metres up the field. 

Tasked with playing more direct in Round 4, Fonua-Blake ran for 196 metres with 99 of those metres coming post-contact. Fonua-Blake will be a regular feature here if he is put in positions to get the most out of his ability.

Punters- At TopSport, the Warriors are paying $11 to collect a wooden spoon in 2022.

11. Viliame Kikau

There was a lot of discussion around Viliame Kikau signing with the Bulldogs for 2023 and how that might impact his form in 2022. Well, any thought about Kikau sitting back and taking it easy with a lucrative contract already signed can be put to bed.

Kikau has been outstanding to start the season. He's scored two tries and run for 96 running metres per game - not unexpected. What comes as somewhat of a surprise are the NRL-high five line break assists in four games. 

The Panthers are using him in a variety of ways and turning his destructive carries with the ball into opportunities for others out wide.

Punters- At TopSport, the Panthers are paying $1.9 to return to the Grand Final. 

12. Tyson Frizell

The Stats Insider Player Ratings reward consistency over the course of a month and few backrowers are more consistent than Tyson Frizell.

A willing carrier into contact and strong defender, the 30-year-old turns up to do his job week in, week out.

He's averaging 138 metres per game despite being forced to leave the field after 52 minutes in Round 4. With over 17 offloads in each of the last five seasons, Frizell is on his way to another offload-heavy season with four in four games. Defensively, he has made 122 tackles at a 95.3% clip.

His work isn't glamorous but it's what the Knights need as they look set to hover around the bottom of the Top 8 all season.

Punters- At TopSport, the Knights are paying $1.53 to miss finals in 2022. 

13. Cameron Murray

Cameron Murray and Isaah Yeo are likely to rotate through this position all year.

Yeo has picked up 12 Dally M points and deserves a mention here. He has put the Panthers on his back without Nathan Cleary to start the year. But like many of the great players, his impact doesn't always show in the numbers.

Murray, on the other hand, has a try, two try assists and two line breaks (Yeo is yet to register in any category) while also throwing six offloads and averaging 119 running metres per game. His ability to move the ball wide or promote a quick play-the-ball in good ball is second-to-none and it won't be long before the likes of Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell begin to make the most of his work.

The Rabbitohs have struggled throughout the first month overall but Murray is the exception. 

Punters- At TopSport the Rabbitohs are paying $13 to win the premiership. 

Did you enjoy this article? Join our free mailing list to get the best content delivered straight to your inbox, or join the conversation by leaving a comment below or on the Stats Insider Twitter or Facebook page.