As it is new criteria being used this year it is not right to compare Makinson with the previous winners selected. Looked at under the new conditions it isn't a bad decision but those conditions are daft - more so in that there is one more match to go this weekend. What happens if Makinson has a stinker this weekend and one of the other contenders rips it up? Does this weekends game count towards next year's award?

Ironically if only international games were used in the past then Farrell and Sinfield wouldn't have won theirs, both couldn't hack it against the Aussies but dominated Super League.

I would imagine the Golden Boot would have more "carat" value when we have a World Cup Competition.

This is a joke surely, this really has to be. If this is the case then whoever picked this has just devalued the golden boot award to the same relevance as a pub raffle. New criteria or not and who decided to change tge criteria into who has played well in 3 games.

The Rfl have already turned the man if steel awards into a joke players vote award that the players don’t take seriously.

Unbelievable what a joke.

Who has made the decision? Before we assume the default position of blaming the RFL do we know it's them? Or is it the RLIF? Or is it just a bunch of journalists?

Well done TM for winning the Golden Boot and being the best International player this year. Doesn’t mean he’s the best player in the world this year. I think with the rule changes the award recognition changes. Think some are over reacting and probably need to stop comparing him to previous players that have won it.

It's a joke.

And a disgrace. I've cancelled my subscription.

Whoosh

They should have created a new trophy if they wanted an 'international player of the year' award instead of reusing (and devaluing) something as prestigious as the golden boot

It's like awarding the SL trophy to the winner of the challenge cup final

Then change the name if the award and give makinson international player of the year or something, why downgrade the award, because thats what is they have done, essentially an insult to previo winners.