It's been a massive couple of weeks for Kurt Mann.
Fresh on the heels of becoming a father for a second time and being selected in the extended Queensland Maroons squad for Origin III on the Gold Coast on Wednesday night, Mann has settled his playing future at the Newcastle Knights.
The 28-year-old jack-of-all-trades has signed a two-year contract extension that will tie him to the club until the end of 2023.
The Knights are expected to make his re-signing official this week following confirmation on Friday off-contract backrower Brodie Jones is staying for a further two years.
Knights coach Adam O'Brien is a big fan of Mann and says any flak he may cop from fans is grossly unfair.
"He's got all the qualities I love in players - he's a competitor who you know will go out there every week and give you 100 percent, no questions asked," O'Brien said.
"I'm not on any social media but I get told from time to time he cops some criticism, even from our own people.
"I've got no idea why. What I do know is every player at our club wants to play with him, because he just gives everything he's got.
"It's strange because I keep hearing that our fans want our team to have players who are competitors and will get out there and give it a red hot crack. Well, that's exactly what I love about Kurt."
O'Brien said Mann's value is in his ability to take on and adjust to any position he's needed to play in.
"It's really hard for him when I keep moving him around, but the reason I do that is he just competes in every position and never complains about it. He just gets out there and plays," he said.
"That's why Queensland have got him up there. You can just chuck him on the field. He doesn't care what number he's got on his back, he's just going to compete for you."
Mann was named as a standby player for the Maroons in jersey No.19, but the loss of David Fifita to suspension and Jai Arrow after a much-publicised COVID-19 protocol breach, means they are yet to settle on their final 17 for Origin III.
He's a genuine NRL all-rounder, having played every position in the backline, as well as hooker and lock, during his 140-game top-grade career.
O'Brien has no doubt Mann will do a job for the Maroons if Queensland coach Paul Green decides to pick him.
"I'd love to see him play," O'Brien said. "As I've said on numerous occasions, he never knows where he's going to play, but he never complains.
"Wherever we think we're a little bit short, he's our guy. And he's come up with some massive plays in our games.
"He's done a really good job for us defensively out there on the edges too."
