Parramatta Eels player Jon Mannah dies after long battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
Parramatta players and staff are in mourning today, following the death of prop Jon Mannah overnight.
The 23-year-old brother of Eels and New South Wales Origin prop Tim Mannah succumbed to a long battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma after being diagnosed in 2009.
He made a stunning comeback to rugby league with Cronulla in 2011, making 24 NRL appearances before joining his brother at Parramatta last season.
But a relapse early in the year forced Mannah to undergo a second round of chemotherapy treatment, robbing the pair of the dream to play NRL together.
He had been unable to train during the pre-season as the illness reached its final stages.
Former Eels winger up for Super League Man of Steel award
The award is the English equivalent of the Dally M medal in Australia.
Former Parramatta Eels winger Bevan French is one of three players up for the Super League Man of Steel award as he looks to join an illustrious group.
Started in 1977, the Super League Man of Steel award is handed down to the best player of the season in the Super League – the English equivalent of the Dally M medal in Australia.
French was named on the shortlist for the award alongside English internationals Tom Johnstone (Catalan Dragons) and Jack Welsby (St Helens).
The former two-time Indigenous All-Star was shortlisted for the award due to a tremendous season that saw him switch from the wing to the halves. He is the current league leader in try assists and played a crucial role in allowing Wigan to win the League Leaders Shield.
If he wins the Man of Steel award, he will become the ninth ex-NRL player to win the prestigious honour, following Brodie Croft in 2022 and Jackson Hastings in 2019.
Leaving the Parramatta Eels at the end of the 2018 season with 47 games and 140 points under his belt, French was linked with a return to the NRL last year.
