Another record beckons for Bunnies' favourite son AJ

Author: Martin Lenehan NRL Senior Journalist
Timestamp: Fri 14 Jun 2024, 12:01 PM

The big daddy of all try-scoring records remains a matter of ‘Catch me if you Ken’ but prolific Rabbitoh Alex Johnston has the chance in Round 15 to claim another slice of history on his journey to the top of the mountain.

Johnston’s career tally of 190 tries has him equal second with Billy Slater on the all-time try-scoring list, 22 behind legendary Norths and Manly man Ken Irvine’s tally of 212.

Both proud one-club men, Johnston and Slater are the joint owners of the record for most tries for a single club, a list which features Irvine in third (171 tries for Norths) and Andrew Ettingshausen fourth with 166 four-pointers for the Sharks.

As he looks to get some momentum after an injury interrupted start to 2024, Johnston can take sole possession of the record for most tries for one club if he can get over the line against the Broncos on Friday night.

AJ the record breaker

After launching the season with his 188th career try in Las Vegas in Round 1, Johnston missed out in the following three games and succumbed to a hamstring injury in Round 4 against the Bulldogs.

He had to wait until Round 11 to get back on the field and immediately set about chalking up No.189, crossing just before half-time in a 28-22 loss to the Cowboys at Magic Round.

A week later he joined ‘Billy The Kid’ on 190 when he scored one of his team’s seven tries in a morale-boosting 42-26 win over the Eels.

Great Grand Final Moments: 2012 Billy Slater Try

The resurgent Rabbitohs again passed the 40 mark in last week’s win over the Titans but for one of the rare times in the past five seasons, Johnston failed to trouble the scorers.

Between 2020 and 2023, Johnston racked up a remarkable 104 tries in 92 games, including a five-try haul against the Roosters in Round 20, 2020 and 10 hat-tricks.

The longest try drought across his stellar 221-game career was five matches in 2016, between Round 16 and 21, while Irvine’s longest drought was six games at Manly in 1971 and Slater twice went eight games without scoring a try.

In a decorated 328-game career for Cronulla, the most games Ettingshausen went without crossing the stripe was 10, during his debut season as a teenager in 1983.

Whereas ET’s run of outs came early, the opposite was true of Manly magician Brett Stewart, whose 10-game drought came in the final 10 outings of his 233-game career.

Dubbed ‘The Prince of Brookvale’, Stewart’s tally of 163 tries makes him top of the heap for Manly, and ninth overall on the all-time premiership list.

Of the eight men above Stewart, only Johnston is still playing, and at 29 he has time on his side in his bid to make history and run down Irvine.

For now, it's one record at a time, with the opportunity to become the greatest try-scorer at a single club awaiting him on Friday night in front of the Rabbitohs faithful he has thrilled for a decade.