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Chris Chester names the player Wakefield will build their team around

Wakefield boss Chris Chester says the club will look to build a team around their highly-rated forward Kelepi Tanginoa.

Tanginoa was again a standout for Trinity in their final game of the season against Salford on Friday, adding to a number of top-drawer performances he has produced this season.

The 26-year-old Aussie signed from Manly in 2019 after shrugging off late interest from St Helens, and he has since become one of Wakefield’s most important players.

Speaking on Tanginoa’s display against the Red Devils, which saw him score another two tries, Chester said: “I think Kelepi has been a shining light for us this year.

“I just think he is a really important player we need to build a team around and, we as a club will fight tooth and nail to make that happen.

“I know he is a nice kid and there is a lot of clubs that are probably sniffing around Kelepi but what I will say is that the kid is loving life at Wakefield Trinity, as is his family.

“We are hopeful we can get something sorted long term and that we can get a team built around Kelepi Tanginoa.”

Wakefield were downed 28-20 by Salford in their last game of a tough campaign, failing to recover from a 22-4 half-time deficit.

Chester lamented his team’s poor start but was proud of Trinity’s effort after being forced to make a number of changes a short time before the game.

He added: “We gave ourselves too much to do in the second half. Considering we had to change the team an hour and half before kick-off was not ideal.

“We threw Kyle Wood and Connor Bailey at half-back. We had to go with Harry Bowes, who again I thought was really good for us and had to learn a lot of important lessons.

“Considering what we had to go through the last 24 hours, I thought it was a really positive display.

“We were a little bit loose that first 30 minutes. I thought we got a foothold towards the back end of the first half.

“But I was still disappointed with the first half. We played some decent stuff in the second but gave ourselves too much to do.”

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