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Forwards are not usually known for completing every game they play in, but there are those across the top four tiers who more often than not put in a full shift. Playmaker's Nathan John takes a look at those forwards who have put in the hard yards over the past two seasons.
Andre Ayew (Swansea City) – 7553 minutes
Having enjoyed two spells at the South Wales club, spanning from 2015 to present, Ayew is widely regarded as the Swans' most important player. With 15 goals already this season - his latest in a 3-0 win at Millwall last weekend - Ayew is just one goal shy of his tally of 16 for last season in the Championship.
However, with Norwich out of sight and Watford streaking away in second place, Steve Cooper will need his Ghanaian frontman to stay fit and maintain his form if Swans are to finish the season toasting promotion to the Premier League.
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) – 7130 minutes
Having signed for Aston Villa last summer from Brentford for a fee of £30.8M, the English forward has played every minute of Villa’s 30 Premier League games this season, making him the only striker in the league to do so.
After firing 26 goals in the Championship for the Bees last season, Watkins has shown he can handle the step up in class to the Premier League with a dozen goals already to his name this term, along with a goal on his international debut for England recently.
Sam Hoskins (Northampton Town) – 6907 minutes
The 28-year-old forward has started 39 games in League One this season, scoring five goals, in addition to the 39 appearances he made for Northampton during their promotion season from League Two last term.
It's been a tough season for the Cobblers this time round, but Hoskins - who scored a penalty in a 1-1 draw with Bristol Rovers last weekend - has maintained his availability and will be a key man if his side are to remain outside the relegation zone in what promises to be a dogfight down at the bottom of the third tier.
Lucas Akins (Burton Albion) – 6488 minutes
Although he's renowned for his versatility, Lucas Akins is primarily a forward and takes fourth spot on this list courtesy of playing a whopping 6488 minutes of football over the past two seasons.
A firm advocate that 'the best ability is availability', Akins has been a key figure for the Brewers, as Burton have gone from strength to strength since the appointment of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink on New Year's Day - a team that was rock bottom of the division at the turn of the year, now 18th, 10 points clear of the relegation places.
Ryan Bowman (Exeter City) – 6477 minutes
Our first League Two player on the list, Exeter forward Ryan Bowman has been a regular for the Grecians as they chase their dream of promotion to League One.
Perennial play-off contenders, Exeter are currently eighth in the table, a point adrift of Newport in seventh. Although Matt Jay has been in trailblazing form for the Grecians this season with 17 goals, Bowman has led the line for the Devon outfit and weighed in with a sizeable 13 strikes himself, only one less than he scored in L2 last season when Exeter fell at the final hurdle, losing to Northampton 4-0 in the play-off final.
Adam Armstrong (Blackburn Rovers) – 6430 minutes
Blackburn Rovers' season has fallen away after showing real promise early on, but striker Adam Armstrong has certainly pulled his weight with 21 goals in 35 league games.
A pacy presence up top, Armstrong has had more shots, and more shots on target, than any player in the Championship this season - with only Darragh Lenihan and keeper Thomas Kaminski seeing more league gametime for Rovers.
Go back to last season and Armstrong played every game for Rovers hitting 16 goals in 46 games; his goalscoring prowess and conditioning suggesting that he could be ready for a move to the Premier League in the not too distant future.
Jamal Lowe (Swansea City) – 6412 minutes
The second player on this list for Championship high-flyers Swansea City, Lowe only joined the Welsh club this season having played for Wigan Athletic during the last campaign.
A fast, technical forward, Lowe has also shown admirable stamina - clocking up well over 6000 minutes during the past two seasons and starting 36 of Swansea's 40 games this term.
A double against Millwall last weekend underlined how influential Lowe is becoming - his 11 goals for Swansea this term outweighing the five he scored for the Latics last season.
James Collins (Luton Town) – 6284 minutes
Irish forward James Collins is the final forward on this select list. A prolific presence up top for the Hatters since joining them from Crawley in 2017/18, Collins has only started 26 of his 35 league appearances for Luton this season, but makes this list after playing every Championship game last season, as Luton pulled off an unlikely escape from relegation.
In total, Collins has scored 70 goals in 177 games across all competitions for Luton over the past four seasons - some going.
▶ Played most league minutes fr. 19/20 (t4t FORWARDS; inc. P/Os):
— playmakerstats (@playmaker_EN) April 13, 2021
⏱ 7553 mins: Andre Ayew
⏱ 7130': Ollie Watkins
⏱ 6907': Sam Hoskins
⏱ 6488': Lucas Akins
⏱ 6447': Ryan Bowman
⏱ 6430': Adam Armstrong
⏱ 6412': Jamal Lowe
⏱ 6284': James Collins#PL #EFL #Swans #AVFC pic.twitter.com/K0aiUk2upE
