It’s coming to the stage of the season where the wheeling and dealing comes to a close with the August 4th deadline imminent, as such we’ve seen the likes of St Helens boost their squad with Moses Mbye whereas other teams like Leeds Rhinos and Wigan Warriors have kept themselves out of the market.
Castleford Tigers are another side that have been busy with their squad management this week and that’s seen the signing of World Cup breakout star Liam Horne, Greek international forward Billy Tsikrikas as well as the release of two other overseas men.
It was widely expected that at least one overseas player would be released given that they were full on their quota spots and therefore couldn’t sign the Papua New Guinea hooker.
In a surprising twist though the Tigers released two overseas players with former Hull FC men Mahe Fonua and Bureta Faraimo both being released with immediate effect, suggesting that another overseas star could be heading to Wheldon Road soon.
Those departures were confirmed on Tuesday evening with centre Fonua releasing a statement via the club website.
“I’m really sorry that my Castleford journey has come to an end, but I have a young family back home that I’ve been away from, and I am looking forward to reuniting with them again,” Fonua explained.
“I’ve loved my time here at The Jungle and made some great memories and mates I’ve made along the way.”
Reports overnight now give an inkling as to who may be incoming given that the two versatile backs have made way.
The Mole of Wide World of Sports has suggested that Castleford are ‘leading the hunt’ for Cronulla Sharks’ 23-year-old centre Kayal Iro, son of former Wigan, Leeds and Saints’ Kevin Iro.
There had previously been speculation that Iro could be headed to the Jungle but ultimately nothing came of it, however these fresh reports coming in sync with the release of two overseas players could well mean a deal is close to being done.
Previously, Andy Last had told BBC Radio Leeds that “an offer has been made.”
He explained: “It’s a case of seeing if we can get it across the line. He’s someone I think could help us.
“The process of recruitment and getting players across the line, you identify the player, offer them a deal and they may agree but the other club on the other side of the world have got to agree to it.
“We’re working through a process and hopefully we get positive news. It’s not a done deal yet.”
With a big end of season push to avoid the drop it could be the case that the Tigers have made a second attempt to get a deal done.
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