Championship club complete another signing amid Gareth Widdop rumours

Former Warrington Wolves, Castleford Tigers and NRL halfback Gareth Widdop has recently been linked with a move to boyhood club Halifax Panthers.

We have already seen one Super League star head to the Championship this week in the shape of Richie Myler and Widdop could soon follow suit.

These rumours have lasted over a year but were reignited when the Game Caller reported he was set to leave Castleford to join the Panthers. However, Widdop would announce his retirement from professional rugby league shortly after.

Some fans pointed out the word “professional” used in his statement believing that it didn’t rule out a move to Halifax as a Championship club. Now there have been murmurings of a big signing for the Panthers with many believing that it could be Gareth Widdop.

The Panthers have added another new face to their squad for 2024 today as they announced the signing of Olly Davies on a one year deal from Betfred Championship outfit Widnes Vikings. Davies has spent two seasons at the DCBL Stadium, but has made the move to call The Shay his new home for 2024.

The former Swinton man began his professional career at St Helens, before moving to Sheffield Eagles, where he helped the South Yorkshire side to victory in the inaugural 1895 Cup Final at Wembley in 2019.

And the 27 year old was pleased to have secured his future to pull on the famous blue and white of Halifax, after becoming new Panthers head coach Liam Finn’s third signing.

“I’m really excited to be here, I’m made up”, said Davies. “The deal got done really quickly but it’s what I really wanted. I’m absolutely buzzing. It was really a 24 hour job, Halifax got in touch and I just jumped at it straight away with two hands and thought that’s what I wanted. Prior to leaving Widnes, it’s the place I said if I’m going to carry on playing, I’d like to go and play for Halifax.”

“I’ve nearly signed here about three or four times over the past few seasons and it’s just not made it over the line unfortunately but it’s always been there. I’ve always had an eye on it, on the Halifax fixture coming up, because I enjoy playing here at The Shay. I’m fortunate enough that I’ve got a few good results away here but I seem to play well here at the same time. I like the place, I like the stadium and the atmosphere that’s created here but now to call it home and to play here week in and week out, I can’t wait.”

“It’s not going to be a tough transition coming in to a load of unknown people which makes it a lot easier for myself. I’ve grown up with Matty (Gee), I’ve grown up with Dizzy (Dan Murray), I’ve met Joe (Keyes) through the England system when I was younger so it’s exciting for me to be back playing with those lads.”

“I’d say my biggest strength is my consistency, I’ve always tried to base my game on consistency. A back rower in the Championship is all about showing up week in and week out. I run hard lines, always turn up in defence on back to back efforts and be reliable. I like to think my teammates think I’m a reliable player so I’m excited to get started.”

Fax boss Liam Finn commented on Davies’ signing: “We needed to add options to our backrow and share the load with Kav and Gee, who put in a massive shift last year playing most minutes of most games, so when we knew we could get Olly we thought it was a good fit to add balance and options at the back of the pack.”

“Olly is a good quality backrower and his attitude towards putting the team first and doing a lot of the work that goes unseen is one of the most attractive aspects for us as a club.”

This may not be the last announcement of its kind. Perhaps we could see Widdop announced by the club in the near future.