What can you say?! What an unbelievable talent. The lad is an absolute freak of a player and he's too hot to handle at the moment.

His media training will come in handy because there's going to be plenty more man of the match interviews coming his way on current form.

Got back after the Wire game and put the Pie v Saints game on sky plus. He looks an excellent player. For me the best 3/4 in SL at the moment.
Very fast and very strong. The best 3/4 runner . Him and Sandow are a level above.

(I'm not just saying this as a biased diluded Wire fan, but Sandow is amazing. He's like one of your ridicously good players in playing in the late
80s/early 90s era-Gregoryesk and more. He's unbelievably good.)

Manfriedi-Outstanding player. The first 3/4 on the team sheet for England.

If he carries on this season the way he's started he'll be the first choice England winger and a contender for MOS. I fear the NRL will be sniffing soon.

What is his contract length?

Surely we must have learnt from Burgess not to wait until it is too late to get him signed up for a few years and at the same time offer him a big pay rise?

I know the NRL have shed loads of cash but as Sutton proved not everyone wants to up sticks and leave. A top wage befitting the talent on show even if it is within the bounds of the SL salary cap may still be enough for some. We at least have to try and not make the job easy for the NRL clubs.

Manfredi signed a four year deal last season iirc. It's safe to say his agent will be asking for more money pretty soon though and so he should be.

Fully agree with all the above, even the bit about Sandow. He certainly has something of Gregory's "cheeky chappie" persona about him.

DM top of the SL stats for tackle busts, I see. And Bateman third! Two top, top guys right there.

Manfredi - frighteningly good.

I've watched a lot of Bateman.
He's good, but I think I must be missing something. What are his real key attributes? He seems to have good hands and reads the game well but I don't see him as a ''strong'' 2nd rower. Having said that he appears to be awkward to put down.
Not really noticed his defence.

Genuinely interested- not a troll.

He's not a big second rower but he's amazingly strong for the size of him. His key attribute for me is a pure desire and will to win that sets him apart from the vast majority of players. He's got an excellent rugby brain as well and is a leader. His workrate is unbelievabl as well, he makes 40/50 tackles and runs 100+ metres on a weekly basis. He just looks a natural born rugby league player to me.

In short he's a fabulous player.

40/50 tackles a week? Other than that fully agree!

Never mind, just realised this thread changed to talking about Bateman!

I did the same as Gazwire, earlier in this thread.

Went to watch the Wire beat the Smellies, then went home and watched your game on Sky+

As Ray Wilkins would say....."MY WORD, THIS BOY LOOKS GOOD"

A fantastic talent, and you're very lucky to have him. That was a superb display of wing play.

I've never wished a player miss a game of RL, but I wont cry if he eats a dodgy meat'n'tater on Thursday night, and he wakes his mother up on Friday morning, shouting....

...."MAM!.......MAM!......MAAAAAAAAAAM! It's comin' out like oxtail soup........MAAAAAAAAM!

Best winger in SL (shame Hall's gone off the boil, a bit, in a 4 nations year )

I wondered there for a minute! Might be over egging it by 5 or 10 tackles but not a million miles out.

Manfredi made that many 'big' tackles yesterday it felt as though he'd been involved in 50

Oxtail soup lol.

I DID quite like oxtail soup...

He does looks fantastic doesn't he.

I know that Wayne Bennett is extremely impressed with him - he will be a shoe in for the England team for the 4 Nations.

Ah but, isn't Wayne Bennett also coach of Brisbane Broncho's, with the England job giving him a first chance of seeing emerging talent before the NRL opposition get a look in.

Emerging talent, and Greg Eden?

Looks certain to play internationals at the end of the year, looks like a young ryan hall with the mix of power and speed, if he can develop his reading of the game a little you may well have your own WBW

Will you keep him or will he go home should Leigh make SL, and make another father and son to play for the comics

Class player, like Jon Wells said in the after match analysis, he's carried Wigan at times this year. Can see the NRL come calling soon

Best enjoy him whilst we can! He'll be looking for a new deal pretty soon I'd imagine and we'll probably put an NRL release clause in it.


It's a fairly depressing place to be sat there thinking that players are actually playing too well!! That well that they'll be off down under (or Union) in the not too distant future.

And was playing with a dislocated toe tonight, some tough player that.

Wire fan in peace, you've got an absolutely cracking player in manfredi. Quality player.

Burgess, Manfredi, Charnley.
Impressive.
(What chance Charnley gets sod all enjoyment from kick and clap and comes back ? He'll only touch the ball a couple of times a game)