Warrington's former Dragons and Bulldogs fullback has been rewarded for his exceptional season with the Wolves during which his elusive running made him Super League's top metre-maker with a huge 4234m - 457 more than nearest rival Ryan Hall.
It's earned the 28-year-old from Hurstville, NSW a place in the three-man shortlist alongside perhaps the two best halfbacks in the league, Hull KR's Mikey Lewis and Salford's Marc Sneyd.
Dufty could become the third Australian in successive years after Wigan's Bevan French last year and Salford's Brodie Croft in 2022 - and the fifth in seven years - to take the Man of Steel Award should he get the nod at next Tuesday's awards ceremony in Leeds.
And he would be the 10th Australian in all to take the accolade in its 47-year history.
The 23-year-old Lewis, who's scored 18 tries this season, and Dufty, who's crossed the whitewash 17 times, will go head to head this weekend when Rovers host Warrington for a place in the Super League grand final.Â
Dangerous — Betfred Super League (@SuperLeague) @matt_dufty1 🔥Here's why the @WarringtonRLFC No.1 is a @StevePrescott1 MBE Man of Steel nominee 👇#SuperLeague pic.twitter.com/u7NUvi8ExBOctober 2, 2024
Lewis is widely considered to have been Super League's outstanding performer this campaign, having led his side to a second-place finish in the league and notched a personal tally of 216 points.Â
He hopes to follow in the footsteps of former Hull KR loose forward Gavin Miller, the Australian who was the first overseas player to collect the award in 1986.Â
Dufty is in his third season with Warrington and has been thriving under their new coach, former South Sydney star Sam Burgess.
With 19 try assists, 165 tackle-busts, 24 line breaks and 25 line break assists to go with those 17 tries, Dufty would be the first Warrington player to win the award since their Welsh ace Jonathan Davies back in 1994.Â
AUSTRALIAN WINNERS OF THE MAN OF STEEL AWARD
1986 Gavin Miller (Hull KR)
1999 Adrian Vowles (Castleford)
2005 Jamie Lyon (St Helens)
2009 Brett Hodgson (Huddersfield)
2010 Pat Richards (Wigan)
2018 Ben Barba (St Helens)
2019 Jackson Hastings (St Helens)
2022 Brodie Croft (Salford)
2023 Bevan French (Wigan)
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