{"id":365182,"date":"2026-01-11T23:05:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-11T23:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/365182\/"},"modified":"2026-01-11T23:05:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T23:05:09","slug":"warrington-wolves-half-back-justifies-huge-new-deal-as-steve-mcnamara-highlights-key-attributes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/365182\/","title":{"rendered":"Warrington Wolves half-back justifies huge new deal as Steve McNamara highlights key attributes"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Warrington Wolves eased through their pre-season opener with the win seeing one half-back prove their worth and justify a recent five-year deal.<\/p>\n

Wire became the first Super League side to play in 2026 as they eased past Widnes Vikings with a 50-12 win in a game marred by fan violence, with a teenage boy ending up in hospital as a result<\/a>.<\/p>\n

That understandably took the shine off a strong start to 2026 from Warrington Wolves as plenty of new signings and young stars impressed in the huge win<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of those who get on the score sheet and impressed as he conducted play was half-back Ewan Irwin, who earned his debut last season under Sam Burgess and has since signed a five-year deal at the club.<\/p>\n

Whilst playing in a handful of Super League games, Irwin spent much of 2025 leading the club\u2019s academy to a flawless season domestically which then led to a tour of Australia, where he caught the eyes of NRL clubs per reports.<\/p>\n

The Wolves managed to tie him to a long-term deal with Friday night\u2019s performance the first of many that Warrington fans can expect to see from him, and something that assistant coach Steve McNamara was also impressed with.<\/p>\n

Warrington Wolves assistant hails praise on young star Ewan Irwin<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a student of the game and he\u2019s keen to learn,\u201d McNamara responded when asked post-match<\/a> about the teenager\u2019s talents.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s got his five-year deal and it\u2019s well deserved, he\u2019s done great getting that but he\u2019s not stopped in terms of progressing and trying to move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

One thing that McNamara did note was the fact Irwin, who does not turn 18 until next month, still has lots of room to grow physically with the 17-year-old understandably not fully developed. That\u2019s something he counters with his maturity and attitude though, McNamara contested.<\/p>\n

The ex-Catalans boss said: \u201cHe\u2019s got a lot of physical development left in him and rugby league knowledge left for him to pick up but he\u2019s a very mature young man and a very talented young man.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe trains really hard and he\u2019s got his feet on the ground, you can see that quite clearly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt gives him a really good start to his professional career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wire fans will next get a chance to see Irwin in action when the club take on Leigh Leopards at the end of the month<\/a> in a game where more starting players will be expected to feature, though Irwin could well earn minutes.<\/p>\n

Check out the latest episode of The Serious About Rugby League Show on\u00a0our YouTube channel here.<\/a><\/p>\n

FT with @ResultingIT<\/a><\/p>\n

Dusting off the cobwebs with a pre-season derby victory! \ud83d\udcaa pic.twitter.com\/DcjpklHTPr<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Warrington Wolves (@WarringtonRLFC) January 9, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

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