Eastmond inevitably in a Wigan or Warrington shirt in a couple of years' time is a recurring nightmare of mine... There isn't a young half-back talent even remotely in his league in our game right now and we'll be cursing the way certain sections of our numpty fan brigade have made it nigh impossible for him ever to return to Saints for as very long time to come.

I notice he's been tweeting a lot about Saints lately - he obviously still keeps an active interest in the game and the club.

It's a real shame the way it panned out. I'm with Saddened on this one. Obviously he didn't become the RL player he might have become, but in terms of phenomenal raw ability at a young age the only Saints product in my time that matches him is Cunningham.

He does seem to have this ongoing problem with injuries and/or being a bit soft, which may stop him becoming a great player in either code, but if he can get over that he will be special. The only way I can see him ending up back in league, though, is if he continues to struggle with his fitness and Bath decide to cut their losses, so it would be a major gamble for whichever club went for him.

Erm, Sam Tomkins.

On that try, I think I could have scored that. I've experienced more determined tackling at school.

Tomkins hardly qualifies as a half these days - Eastmond has/had far more ability/potential in the halves than Tomkins.

Eastmond was on a night out round town the other week. So he's not exactly wiped his time here from his memory

No he hasn't.

Of course he has. In what categories relevant to a half back would Eastmond rank lower than Tomkins exactly?

Eastmond is like Rob Burrow but with a physique like Ellery Hanley, so he will be a very effective player if he stays fit.

That said when it comes to being a class halfback he's not fit to lace Lee Briers boots.

He was a darn sight better when last on an RL field than Briers was at the same age - Kyle, if he comes back to RL (hopefully in a red vee) with a bit more maturity and a little attitude adjustment and stays fit for any length of time will develop so far past Briers' capabilities that it would be an embarassment to try and compare them.

Kyle had a much more rounded skill set in terms of passing and kicking than tomkins. Its also a better skill set than Briers and certainly Long had at the same age. Whether his expolsive pace and power would prove to be more or less effective than Tomkins rangey side steps is a matter of opinion, i guess.

However, Tomkins has heart and a will to win (in spades), which seperates the wheat from the chaff. I'm afriad that Eastmond never showed that steel imo.
If he wants to spend his time getting freezing cold on the wing for bath, gettting the ball 4 times a game, then fair play. He'll probably be making a decent wedge, but if he'd have stuck to league he'd be getting tapped up by NRL club and be looking at making just as much money in the right game.

I like you NS, I really do (I know you couldn't sleep till i told you that) but I do have to laugh at this statement. Defending a more recent saints half back who has embarrassed your team over an older saints half back who has embarrassed your team, purely because there's more chance of Eastmond 'returning home'. I can just see you in ten years time proclaiming eastmond's talents as 'embarrassing' compared to the next promising player to leave the banks of st helens for more money or fame.

Eastmond was good, briers is good. Any team would and is lucky to have either. You do have ro admit briers has been a little bit special at times, don't you?

Briers has really stepped his game up under Smith and has indeed at times been exceptional over the last few years and is quite probably the best half in the British game at the moment. I'd dearly love to see him in a Saints shirt again as he's several leagues better than anything we have at the moment. But the fact remains that Eastmond has far greater physical talents than Briers could ever dream of having and if he ever fulfils his potential (no matter which shirt he's wearing at the time) Eastmond would be capable of greater heights than Briers - that's not to denigrate Briers, or to say that Eastmond ever will actually fulfil his potential, but is just a fact given their comparative levels of inate talent. So ner.