Adrian Lam has lifted the lid on what Leigh Leopards fans to expect from them in the recruitment market going into 2026.
The Leopards have recruited heavily over the last three years since making the step up from the Championship and they have reaped the rewards of that with a Challenge Cup and two play-off finishes being secured prior to this season. And, they know a win over Castleford Tigers on Thursday evening will cement their spot in the top six for a third successive year.
However, heading into 2026, Lam doesn’t expect to see quite as many changes made to his squad as the club look to kick on next year with a slightly more settled group. Of course, the Leopards currently have a number of players off-contract, but, while nothing has been announced, the expectation is that a number of those key men will stay on such as Lachlan Lam, Gareth O’Brien and Ben McNamara.
The Leopards are thought to have room the cap, though, and with three more quota spots to fill, they can be expected to recruit from down under as well as domestically. Leigh have kept their business under wraps for now, but as clubs step up their recruitment for next year, Lam has outlined his expectations.
Leigh Leopards boss talks recruitment
“We’ve been quite aggressive I feel in the last three years in bringing players in, I think we’ve had around 12 plus changes every year to get to a particular point to where we want to be,” Lam said in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
“I think we’ve done it as good or if not better than any other club. That will continue. It won’t be half as many as that but it will be close to half.
“We have a five-year plan here and Derek the board and myself are on the same page about how we want to look. I think we’ve improved commercially and around the ground, it’s probably the best stadium to be at for atmosphere.
“There’s a lot of things are going our way. We have every team playing in every competition now as a club and the club are working really hard on developing and bringing through our scholarship and youngsters for the first time ever. We’re in a really good place in terms of the trajectory of the club. We’re really excited.”
