England Rugby League star Dom Young’s Union admission with timeline laid out

England Rugby League star Dom Young has made an admission on a possible code switch with a timeline for a decision laid out.

After his former Sydney Roosters teammate Joseph Sua’ali’i struck a scintillating debut in the 15-man code last Saturday against England, heads appear to have been turned among the higher-ups in that sport as to the talent on show in Rugby League.

Young’s name was dragged into the conversation after a from The Daily Telegraph quoted the winger’s agent as confirming: “There’s been strong interest from rugby union for Dom.” That same article also revealed Steve Borthwick (England Rugby Union head coach) to be an admirer of Young with the six-foot seven-inch winger seemingly on the radar of the ‘other’ code.

Such interest will continue given the ease at which Sua’ali’i transitioned to Union with the 21-year-old looking to be one of the most accomplished on the field last weekend as Australia upset England and landed the win as 5/1 underdogs, something that should not have been a surprise considering the code-hopper’s resume.

Sua’ali’i debuted in the NRL at 17, played in a World Cup at 19 and made his State of Origin bow aged 20 earlier this year. He’s now a cross-code international aged 21 and the next man off the ranks for a code switch could be his former teammate Dom Young.

Dom Young ‘focused on Rugby League’ amidst Union talks

The Sydney Roosters star has now spoken with the media Down Under to confirm that a move from League to Rugby Union is something that he would consider, telling the Sydney Morning Herald that “it’s something that I’ve always been open to.”

He even conceded that it’s ‘an opportunity that has presented itself before’, confirming that he had considered the switch. The positive news for Rugby League fans is that there doesn’t look to be an immediate switch on the horizon.

“Obviously I’ve got a few more years here at the Roosters before I need to think about something like that,” Young told the Herald.

The towering winger is locked in until the end of the 2027 season, by which team he will be 26 and approaching the prime of his career but whether he’ll be playing Rugby League or Rugby Union remains to be seen.

It would seem that a future in the 13-man code looks the likeliest as Young admitted that he knocked back Union approaches before making his NRL switch, whilst also conceding that he doesn’t watch the sport.

On making his NRL switch, Young explained: “I sat down with my family during that decision-making process, when I was either coming over to the NRL or trying my hand at union.

“It’s something I considered very seriously, but I ended up sticking with league. It’s what I’ve been playing all my life, so at the time I thought I’d stick with that.

“I’ve got a lot of goals I still haven’t achieved in rugby league yet and my mind is pretty focused on what I want to do in rugby league.”

Whilst the code-hopping talk could reignite should Joseph Sua’ali’i puts in another elite performance this weekend, it seems that for now at least, Dom Young’s head has not been turned.

Wrapping up on the matter, he said: “I haven’t put too much thought into it, and I’m not looking into it too seriously at the minute. I’ve still got a few more years at the Roosters.”