Castleford Tigers half-back Rangi Chase has joined Widnes Vikings on loan until the end of the 2017 season.
Tigers coach Powell confirmed that Chase would not be part of his plans for next season, and with his Tigers deal due to expire at the end of 2017, Chase will now see out the remainder of the season with Widnes with a view to securing a deal into 2018.
The loan agreement does not have a call back option, and Chase will not be able to play against Castleford this season – meaning that his Tigers career is now effectively over.
Chase said: “I have nothing but love for Cas as a club, the players, coaches and back room staff, including the fans, it’s a place that will always be close to my heart.
“There are people who are in front of me in my position that are playing very well and some awesome young talent coming through. I’m aware that I wasn’t in the plans for the future and I would like to thank Cas for granting me this opportunity to go out and play as much as I can, and I have Cas to thank for making me fall back in love with my childhood dream again.”
Tigers CEO Steve Gill said: “We had a tough decision to make moving forward as a group and unfortunately Rangi wasn’t going to be part of the 2018 squad.
“After speaking with him it was felt that by giving him an opportunity to go out on loan at Widnes and play week in week out, it would give him a great opportunity to earn a contract with them. James Rule has made quite a few attempts to take Rangi on loan this year, so we felt this was the right time to let it happen. We will all have our individual memories of Rangi and I’m sure you would all like to wish him well in the next chapter of his career.”