More rumours in Australian media of Gareth Widdop NRL return

[josie andrews]

REPORTS of a return to the NRL for Warrington Wolves half-back Gareth Widdop are refusing to go away.

The Australian media are reporting The Wire as having reached out to a number of clubs Down Under and that the England international wants to return to Australia, with the Daily Telegraph reporting North Queensland Cowboys as the latest club to have expressed an interest.

The first year of Widdop's marquee three-year deal with Warrington has been plagued with constant rumours of an NRL return and the club's stance has been unmoved throughout 2020 – that reports the 31-year-old wants away are news to them.


After joining from St George Illawarra Dragons, Widdop made 14 appearances for The Wire this year, scoring five tries and kicking 10 goals.

https://www.warringtonguardian.co.uk/sp ... rl-return/

[Charriots Offiah]

No surprise. He appears to be a spent force though. Do you remember when many on here were moaning that we hadn’t signed him?

[CheshireWarrior]

I work with Wire fans, il be surprised if any of them shed a tear

[the pieman]

Widdop is one of those players that i really dont get the hype about, but that is based on watching him for England / GB and his cameo for the Wire.

He has only performed once that i can recall for England and that was when he was moved to full back, and i actually thought he could play. Prior to that i was massively underwhelmed by his performances.

What i dont get is how a player can play week in week out in the NRL (so he must be doing something right) but i dont see what he brings to the international team when he is picked

i work in Warrington and guessing that most of the lads i know wont be bothered if he goes back to Oz as he hasnt performed to the levels they were expecting

[fozzieskem]

Widdop is one of those players that i really dont get the hype about, but that is based on watching him for England / GB and his cameo for the Wire.

He has only performed once that i can recall for England and that was when he was moved to full back, and i actually thought he could play. Prior to that i was massively underwhelmed by his performances.

What i dont get is how a player can play week in week out in the NRL (so he must be doing something right) but i dont see what he brings to the international team when he is picked

i work in Warrington and guessing that most of the lads i know wont be bothered if he goes back to Oz as he hasnt performed to the levels they were expecting

I guess he just fits into an Australian way of playing in the halves but I agree with you the only time he’s really turned it on was at fullback

[morley pie eater]

I suspect Widdop is the type of player you need to build a team round, or at least have a team with a Widdop-shaped hole in it: set moves and other players understanding his play.

Part of the reason Finch was so good at Wigan was because Maguire was coach plus he had Hoffman running off him. Imagine if he'd turned up under Noble or Millward, for example.

I think the "improvement" in George Williams is for a similar reason: he's in a team where his style of play fits (probably by design) rather than being asked to play to a preconceived plan.

[Mike]

It's refreshing to see a SL failure being offloaded to the lesser NRL comp for a last payday.

[josie andrews]

Warrington offer Gareth Widdop to NRL clubs

Warrington Wolves have ‘reached out’ to NRL clubs trying to secure Gareth Widdop a return to Australia, according to reports.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Warrington and Widdop’s management have offered the England halfback to clubs, just one year since joining the Super League club.

North Queensland Cowboys are the club being most strongly linked with the 31-year-old, who is keen to return to Australia for family reasons.

Warrington have continued to deny reports Widdop is leaving, which started to surface in the summer.

Widdop, who joined Warrington as one of their marquee players, scored five tries in 14 appearances for the club.

https://www.totalrl.com/warrington-offe ... nrl-clubs/

[jobo]

It's refreshing to see a SL failure being offloaded to the lesser NRL comp for a last payday.

[the pieman]

just seen on RL fans (link to Moley) that he is still struggling despite offering to take a pay cut to $500,000 dollars a season

I dont know the exchange rate, but that seems a hefty salary

as i've posted previously i personally dont watch the NRL but he must be doing something right to have had a career over there for so long, but he just hasnt done it for me when he has represented England / GB