LEEDS RHINOS fullback Richie Myler has left the club to take up a one-year deal with York Knights.
Myler arrives at York with a wealth of experience at the elite level, having spent more than a decade playing in the Betfred Super League while also earning 11 international caps for England and Ireland.
Myler began his professional career with Widnes Vikings, making two appearances for his hometown club in 2007 before signing for Salford Red Devils a year later, earning promotion from National League One (now known as the Betfred Championship) in his debut season.
The half-back’s performances saw him win the first of eight England caps in 2008, scoring eight tries during that time.
Myler penned a deal with Warrington Wolves in 2010, where he won the 2011 League Leaders’ Shield in the Betfred Super League and 2012 Betfred Challenge Cup, beating Leeds at Wembley Stadium.
The Widnes-born star also featured in the 2012 and 2013 Betfred Super League Grand Final defeats to Leeds at Old Trafford.
After two seasons at Catalans Dragons, Myler signed for Leeds in 2018 and went on to guide the Rhinos to the 2020 Betfred Challenge Cup, winning the Lance Todd Trophy in a dramatic 17-16 win over Salford at Wembley Stadium.
Myler earned a third appearance at Old Trafford in 2022 as Leeds reached the Betfred Super League Grand Final, losing out to St Helens in the season’s showpiece event. Later that year, Myler featured three times for Ireland in the Rugby League World Cup.
The 33-year-old remains in the peak years of his career, having registered 17 assists from just 19 appearances in the Betfred Super League last year, more than any other Leeds player.
Explaining his decision to sign for the Knights, Myler said: “I’m delighted really…It’s been one of those parts of the season I’ve just been looking forward to, as soon as I started speaking to Clint about the opportunity – coming to and working with York, and how exciting that was going to be.I jumped at the chance.
“I can see the vision that they’re trying to achieve here, the goal that they want to get to, I could see how I could play a good part in that and I was really excited about coming in and ripping it with the boys…showing them what I’ve got.”
“We’ve talked a lot about experience around the game, I’ve played a number of games at some big Clubs so I want to win – that’s the ambition of the Club. That’s what I see that I can bring to the team – my experience.
“We’ve got a young squad full of a lot of talent that if I can nurture and progress the team forward, bringing that professional environment I’ve been in for a long time.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Head Coach Andrew Henderson added: “He’s a player that came on late in the day to be honest with you…It wasn’t someone who was on our radar months previously or anything like that, but I just think the timing of it was right.
“With Danny Kirmond officially announcing his retirement, I just felt as a coach we probably needed another senior head to balance the squad a little bit more.
“When I heard that Richie was looking for another opportunity and was potentially available, we held those discussions with him and both myself and Clint were impressed with him, and his energy and his desire to be part of this project, be part of this journey and to help this team progress forward in 2024.
“So I’m really, really pleased and thankful that between Clint and Gary Hetherington at Leeds we were able to facilitate that exit strategy for Richie to join us permanently.
“Really excited to have him on board and I’m looking forward to working with him next year.
“…I know Ged Corcoran speaks highly of him from having worked with him at Ireland…That was another contributing factor in making this happen.
“From watching Richie I know he’s a competitor. He has a will to win and again he’s got an abundance of experience and he’s one at the top level and played there for a large part of his career.
“So I think he’s going to bring a lot of quality attributes to this team through again his experience, his leadership, the good habits that he’s going to bring around the team to help them progress and develop further, as well as add value on the field in the position he’ll be playing in.
“I think it’s a really good signing for us as a Club. I think it’s what we needed, that extra bit of experience in the ranks, and I think the quality that Richie will bring both in and off the field is going to be class.”
Myler becomes the 25th confirmed squad member for the 2024 season alongside Joe Brown, Jesse Dee, AJ Towse, Ata Hingano, Conor Fitzsimmons, Jordan Thompson, James Cunningham, Myles Harrison, Bailey Antrobus, Ronan Michael, Jack Teanby, Ukuma Ta’ai, Pauli Pauli, Harry Price, Brenden Santi, Levi Edwards, Oli Field, Will Dagger, Jimmy Keinhorst, Taylor Pemberton, Nikau Williams and Connor Bailey.
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