"He is getting towards the right mix," says McClennan, "We know he has still got that offload in him and it is going to come - but it is about picking the right moments to do it. I'm comfortable with what he is producing. "
"At the start of the year, we didn't really respect the ball," says Mateo. "I thought that with my second phase play it probably won't help us in looking after the ball. I've been a little bit conscious of it and I hope that once we feel comfortable within our structures and systems, I will be able to create more offloads."
"With Feleti in the past, he has probably been guilty of not always having an industrious nature, that ability to hold a team together," says McClennan. "But he is starting to do that now plus he has still got that X-factor. It is the balance that he has been looking for since the start of his career."
"My head has changed and so has my maturity," says Mateo. "I am trying to play more of an all-round game and I think those are things that your team-mates respect more, rather than flashy things. If I can spark something up here or there, I will still try it but there is much more to my game. "
After arriving from Parramatta last season, Mateo took some time to settle and was even tried at five-eighth for a period during their difficult start to 2011. He had come to the Warriors with a big reputation but nobody was quite sure what he would bring. Some feared he would resemble John Sutton, the Souths playmaker who has all the skills but is often guilty of drifting out of games.
By the end of the year Mateo had found his place; in the epic preliminary final in Melbourne, Mateo didn't attempt a single offload for the best part of an hour as that match became a true tussle. Before that, in their run to the finals, Mateo was often the fulcrum of the attack, with James Maloney and Shaun Johnson able to create havoc running off his clever passes.
Mateo claims he is happier and more comfortable this year, after putting too much pressure on himself early last season. The 26-year-old is content to play a more traditional second rower's game; the maverick elements are still there but he doesn't need to be the top gun at all times.
"If we are winning games and playing well as a team I couldn't care less if I had no offloads," says Mateo. "It's all about the team; of course we have to play well individually but I get more enjoyment out of making a cover tackle or a tough hit up for the boys than providing a flashy offload. I also think that maybe last year I was the one to go to if we needed something; this year we probably have more strike, especially with guys like Konrad [Hurrell] creating havoc out wide."
"He is not as loose as before and is choosing the right time to offload," says former Kiwis backrower Hugh McGahan. "He is also understanding the role a bit more and becoming more of a running threat."
He has spent the last few weeks amidst the giants, defending in the middle of the field rather than exclusively on the left edge.
"We have mixed his game up to help the team and he is putting the team first," says McClennan. "I'm pretty certain that his best football will be coming."
Those new standards could see him included in the NSW team for the second state of Origin, which would make him the first Warrior to be picked for the Blues. Since the recent injury to Manly's Tony Williams (and a subsequent injury to Tariq Sims) Mateo has been back in the frame, although Ricky Stuart has other options like Anthony Watmough, Aaron Woods and even Jamal Idris.
"It would mean the world to me," says Mateo.
