Rugby: Wilkinson compares Tuilagi to SBW

Manu Tuilagi. Photo / Getty Images

England believe rising star Manu Tuilagi is a rare talent who could become one of the sport's great players and have compared him to All Black midfielder Sonny Bill Williams.

The Samoan-born centre has had a meteoric rise this year and arrived in New Zealand with the England World Cup squad after just two international matches and less than a full season of Premiership play behind him.

First five-eighth Jonny Wilkinson rates him as the future of English rugby describing him as a rare talent who has the ability to change the course of a game like former NRL star Williams.

"When someone has that ability as an individual to change a game you know he has to be special. I saw it a bit in Toulon with Sonny Bill Williams," he said.

"He has the power, the speed and he reads the game incredibly well. His focus is very sharp, he doesn't drop off."

Mike Tindall, paired in the centres with Tuilagi, has praised the 1.85 metre (six foot) 105 kilogram (16.5 stone) Samoan for his "raw power".

And England attack coach Brian Smith described the 20-year-old as "an outstanding talent" who - in the future - could be prove as influential as All Black Williams and his midfield partner Ma's Nonu.

"I think it's a bit too early to be comparing Manu with those boys, they've got more runs on the board. But who knows, in a couple of years we may be talking about him in the same breath as those two," Smith said.

Tuilagi stepped up to Premiership level for the 2010-11 season, becoming the sixth of his brothers to join the Leicester Tigers.

Although four of his siblings have played Test rugby for Samoa, he opted to play for his adopted country, England.

He had been on the England radar from a young age and was called up to train with the national squad as a 19-year-old. Smith said it was no surprise he made an immediate impact at Test level.

"We knew he had the goods but would it come through in his first two Tests? It clearly has.

"We were pretty sure from what we'd seen with him going shoulder to shoulder with our current squad and it was nice to have that confirmed with his first two performances."

While Tuilagi is now seen as the future of England rugby, just over a year ago the government wanted to deport him after it emerged he had arrived in the country as a 13-year-old on a six-month holiday visa and since stayed on illegally.

Leicester considered letting him play for Samoa and bringing him back as an overseas player.

But Tuilagi wanted to play for England and British authorities eventually gave him special dispensation to stay.

- AAP