STRUGGLING NRL side Wests Tigers are reportedly in the market for Super League halfbacks.
That’s according to the Daily Telegraph which has reported that director of rugby Tim Sheens is currently in the UK scouring the nation for a new talisman.
The Tigers struggled greatly during 2022 with halfbacks Jackson Hastings, Adam Doueihi, Jock Madden and Luke Brooks all failing to inspire Wests to finish in the play-offs for yet another NRL season.
And now Sheens is looking for a new playmaker to offset yet another potential exit from Concord.
That’s because the much-maligned Luke Brooks is set to depart for the Newcastle Knights after almost a year of ‘will he, won’t he?’ type debate.
“I think he’s going,” Daily Telegraph columnist Phil ‘Buzz’ Rothfield told Sky Racing’s Big Sports Breakfast on Monday.
“I know he’s got a year to go on his contract and I know it’s worth about $900,000 but the Newcastle Knights are absolutely desperate to sign him and they’re throwing everything at him.
“The reason being Kalyn Ponga will play five-eighth for the Knights next year but he can’t do it on his own, they need to do something about their spine.
“They don’t have a halfback and they’re trying to work out a deal with the Wests Tigers that suits all parties and I think it will happen. Tim Sheens is in the UK at the moment but I’m pretty sure Luke Brooks will be heading to Newcastle.”
It remains to be seen who could well be on Sheens and Wests’ radar with few Super League halfbacks off-contract, though the former Hull KR and Widnes Vikings boss may well be looking towards potential recruits from the ongoing World Cup.
Already, a number of stars have put themselves in the shop window, including Queensland Cup winger Jake Maizen who bagged a hat-trick for Italy against Scotland as well as free agent Josh Mansour who impressed for Lebanon against New Zealand on Sunday night.
