Does he have much pace or game smarts over all though? We have seen him in the mid-field on occasion and he dosn't seem to really dominate or work as good clearance player or the type to deliver good balls to the forwards so I am quite confused as why Neeld is saying he thinks he could be an elite mid.

Similar to Garlo spending time forward Neeld is trying to add some strings to Howe's bow. Running him through the midfield now means he can trott up and get a kick when the ball isn't reaching the forward 50 or conversely can be swung from the midfield to the forward line when we need a bit of a spark.

No point in wasting a bloke with a huge tank and desire to gut run in a forward pocket. Those roles can be left to blokes like Sylvia who only work hard on occassion.

i can't believe some people on here are actually questioning this bloke.

He is one of the absolute shining lights of the year and i can really see him having a great career with us!

He is actually a bit too fast sometimes for his teammates. Exceptional reaction time, great launching speed, brilliant below the knees and a bit of an alright mark (should really work on his overhead marks though ). Absolutely has all the right elements to be an elite midfielder. Kicking has come good in the last 2 weeks too. All about confidence and experience.

He is what I wish Sylvia turned out to be.

Kicking has come good in the last 2 weeks too.

Yes noticed that, particularly on Monday. I get the feeling we are only scratching the surface so far.

I find it ironic that Howe, picked up at 33, is probably the best performing of all our draft picks in the last couple of years (except probably Watts).

We should offer this bloke a juicy fat contract.

He is just about top of the re-signing list.