True, he'd completely slipped my mind.

Yesterday, we saw the end the of the beginning.

The middle, if it continues, will be electric.

Just to say the Warrington and England coach went on the record in praising Kyle's performance on Saturday - enough said

Young Briscoe at Hull?

I thought Eastmond was fantastic on Saturday and can’t remember the last time Long had as good a game as that, his break for Wellens? try was not a break made by his pace or footwork but he showed good strength for his size to go straight through two defenders.

Nueturing? I never heard of that technique before

Nueturing? I never heard of that technique before

Even the wire fans praised him, everyone in RL world had to praise him. Stood up and was counted, set up tries, scored a try, kicked the goals, tackled well even against a 6'3" centre... good condience boost for the lad, and he looked composed on the SLY TV interview also.

Good game from Eastmond.

But.

Let's not be too hasty in coming to conclusions.

Remember every coach and most players in Super League will have watched the match or a recording of it.

They will be worried about what he can do if given the opportunity.

Their forwards will be delegated to pick him out as a target, and whether attacking or defending he will have a hard time.

He will need to work on his tackling technique to avoid injury and learn how to protect himself when making a break.

Like Rob Burrow he will doubtless be the victim of a number of high tackles - some deliberate others less so.

In addition he needs to show that his body can withstand the rigours of a full season without succumbing to too many injuries.

The above applies to all sorts of weather from the firm pitches which are Saints delight to the occasional mud baths which are a different kettle of fish.


VERDICT

Extremely promising but still too early for a final assessment.

Cheers

Ch.

Champs,
That's a very good summary.

I was very surprised that Warrington did not target him defensively on Saturday. He missed a couple of tackles early on, and I expected them to send the likes of Westwood at him.

Possibly because they lost, Grix and Clarke this did not happen. I'm sure other teams will "go at him"

When Wigan played Salford in the cup, Shaun Wayne said BEFORE the game in the South Stand Bar before the game that Wigan would target Myler and Ratchford.

Coaches do look at these things.

Eastmond's defence cannot be much worse than Long's, which has been in decline for as long as his health.

I thought he looked quite nervous for the first 20 mins, and the more experienced players seemed to be bypassing him a bit when it came to kicks or big passing plays. During that period he flew out of the line a couple of times and left gaps, but once he got his hands on the ball a bit he calmed down and was great both in attack and defence.

This spell while Long is out is perfect for him to become accustomed to the responsibility of playing 7 at this level before he presumably takes over next year. He clearly has all the necessary talent, and just needs the experience to not be overawed by the responsibility inherent in controlling a leading side in big games.

It has to be said he looked the real deal on Saturday. He'll do for me but it still takes time to be consistently good. We might not win anything this year and maybe not next year either but we'll still be there or thereabouts with Eastmond at 7 as long he stays fit.

Wheeler is just as impressive as well, but is going to end up playing as a semi permanent centre at least for the next 8 matches if fit. What could he do at 6 with Eastmond at 7 in the future but we won't see that partnership for some time until Pryce leaves or retires.

off course they do - well done on stating the obvious....coaches and teams have always, and will always send their big guys to run at the opposition's smaller players.

I see no reason why Eastmond will suffer any more than any other halfback in the history of the game, including Sean Long.