Charnley ready to battle Hall for try record

Josh Charnley says his battle with Ryan Hall to be the leading all-time try-scorer in Super League will continue to go "end-to-end" this season.

Charnley grabbed a hat-trick of tries on Sunday in Leigh Leopards' comfortable 38-12 success at Bradford Bulls.

That took him to a tally of 272 Super League tries, one clear of Leeds Rhinos winger Hall.

And with 13 games of the regular season remaining, Charnley expects the record to flip-flop between the pair.

"Me and him have been competing over the years," the 34-year-old told Radio Manchester.

"I've overtaken him, he'll probably score next week, so it's just going to go end-to-end.

"We'll see at the end of the year who comes out of it but at this moment in time, I'm grateful for what's happened."

Charnley's hat-trick at Odsal took him to 16 tries for the 2026 season, second only to the 22 scored by Leeds' Fiji flyer Maika Sivo in his debut Super League campaign.

Charnley's efforts lit up the game and highlighted the finishing skills that have been in evidence since he made his debut in a loan spell from Wigan Warriors to Hull KR at the age of 19 in 2010.

He began the season nine behind Hall but with the 38-year-old only managing six tries so far, Charnley has reeled him in thanks to his scoring prowess. And the Leopards star is showing no signs of stopping.

"It's been one of my goals for a few years now," he said. "I'm grateful to chase it all down, so we'll see what happens now. It's definitely going to go down to the wire."

Leigh have now won six of their past seven Super League games to move into play-off contention and Charnley has been at the centre of their revival after a poor start.

The winger has scored 12 tries in those matches, with head coach Adrian Lam citing his influence.

"I'm so proud of him," Lam said. "He's been working so hard and the way he started that game inspired his team-mates. He's a real inspiration to the whole group."