For some reason or another, some players that excel in the NRL do not make an impact in Super League. However, others take their game to the level, and, in the process help steer their clubs to league and/or cup glory. Here are the top five of those to do so.
Lesley Vainikolo
Signed by the Bradford Bulls from Canberra Raiders - whom he played six seasons for - ahead of the 2002 season, Lesley Vainikolo became one of Super League's greatest ever wingers.
An absolute monster with a deceptive turn of pace, Vainikolo scored an astounding 149 tries in 152 games in his six seasons at Odsal.
His try-scoring record was so impressive that he actually set the record for the most tries in a match - six versus Hull in 2005 - and the most tries in a Super League season - 36 in just 26 games, including five hat-tricks - a record broken only 12 years later by Castleford Tigers' Denny Solomona.
Vainikolo played a major part in what was described as Bradford's 'golden era' in the top flight, winning two Super League titles and three World Club Challenges. After being with the Bulls since 2002, Vainikolo switched codes in 2007 to join Gloucester Rugby Union.
Though born in Tonga, Vainikolo represented only New Zealand at international level. 12 appearances for the Kiwis yielded 14 tries, including nine in the 2000 World Cup.
And, after changing codes, 'The Volcano' - as he was aptly nicknamed - actually represented England five times on the international stage. A truly remarkable player and character, Vainikolo left his mark not only on Bradford but the whole of Super League.
Jamie Lyon
Though he played just two seasons in the Super League, Lyon's impact was colossal.
Lyon joined St Helens from NRL side Parramatta Eels on a two-year deal ahead of the 2005 season, despite the fact that four other Australian clubs were chasing his signature. Some imports take time to settle whilst others hit the ground running, Lyon however, was in a class of his own in the latter respect.
By the end of 2005, he had amassed 22 tries and 42 goals to accumulate a hefty 172 points.
His impact in his first year was so great that Lyon became only the fourth non-British player to be presented with the Man of Steel Award. The accolades Lyon received did not end there and the influential centre was named the Rugby League Players Association Players' Player of the Year and was given a place in the 2005 Super League Dream Team.
Lyon picked up where he left off in 2006; in fact, one could say he even improved. His points tally of 328, for example, almost doubled that of 2005 and he played a vital role in Saints' first-placed finish and their first Grand Final victory since 2002. Capped eight times by Australia, the goal-kicking centre departed at the end of 2006 to join Manly, with whom he stayed until retirement in 2016.
Kylie Leuluai
One of the best prop forwards to ever grace Super League, Kylie Leuluai moved to England - and more specifically Leeds - ahead of the 2007 season after playing for four different NRL clubs including the Manly Sea Eagles. At the age of 29, it seemed as though the 107kg prop forward was coming to the UK for one last payday.
This could not have been further from the truth; Leuluai, until the end of 2015, was an integral part of Leeds' Super League dominance. In his nine seasons at Leeds, the barnstorming forward won six Grand Final titles, two World Club Challenges and two Challenge Cups to make him the most successful overseas player in Leeds' history.
Leuluai made an impressive 258 appearances in a Rhinos' shirt and scored 22 tries.
It was 2015 when the Samoan international finally hung up his boots at the ripe-old age of 37 after being medically advised to do so - the powerful prop suffered from an irregular heartbeat. It was a condition which made playing the game an incredible ask, but one which firmly etched Leuluai into Leeds folklore. And, after a treble-winning season in 2015, Leuluai ended his time at the club and his playing career on a tremendous high.
Pat Richards
After bursting onto the NRL as an 18-year-old for the Parramatta Eels, goal-kicking winger Pat Richards played nearly 100 NRL games for the Eels and the Wests Tigers, the latter whom he won the 2005 NRL Premiership with. At the end of the 2005 season, Richards linked up with Super League side Wigan amidst interest from two other English clubs.
Despite a slow start - where he was played at the unfamiliar position of centre in his first season - Richards' career soon took off. In 2007 and 2008, he was Super League's highest points scorer and was also crowned Wigan's Player of the Year in 2008 after notching up a total of 375 points over the course of the season.
Richards' try-scoring freedom and goal-kicking class proved crucial in Wigan's top-of-the-table finish and Grand Final winning exploits in 2010. That year, Richards became the first Australian to record 1,000 points for the Warriors and his 38-point haul in Wigan's 58-0 thrashing of Catalans was the most by a Wigan player in the Super League era. Richards was not done there either; his overall points tally of 388 equalled the Super League record and his 462 points over the entire season (play-offs and Challenge Cup appearances included) set a new club record at Wigan, whilst Richards scooped up the most prestigious individual accolade on offer - the Man of Steel.
Richards was also a key figure in Wigan's Challenge Cup run in 2011, kicking four goals in the Warriors' victory over Leeds. After eight years at the club, Richards departed Wigan at the end of 2013 after amassing nearly 2,500 points at the Lancashire club. Returning to Wests Tigers, the seven-capped Irish international went down as one of Wigan's greatest ever Aussie recruits.
Brett Hodgson
With over 200 NRL games under his belt, Brett Hodgson moved to English side Huddersfield Giants in 2009. His reputation was so strong that he was made captain in his first year at the club. A ball-playing full-back, Hodgson was Huddersfield's talisman that season, playing a crucial role in the Giants' Challenge Cup run - though they lost in the final.
The former Wests Tigers man proved so influential for Huddersfield in 2009 that he was awarded the Man of Steel. And, after over 50 appearances - from which he recorded nearly 450 points - for the West Yorkshire side, Hodgson was hunted by bigger clubs. One of these were Warrington Wolves - the Challenge Cup holders - whom signed him for the 2011 season.
Hodgson displayed his prowess to an even greater extent with the Wolves, helping them to their first League Leaders' Shield in 2011, though Warrington fell at the semi-final stage of the play-offs. Then, in 2012, Hodgson was instrumental in the Warrington side that won their third Challenge Cup in four years, scoring a try, kicking five goals and winning the Lance Todd Trophy as a result of his stellar performance. Hodgson hung up his boots at the end of the 2013 season after an impressive five-year stint in England.
