Right now a lot of players are in the midst of negotiating deals with their current clubs or about a potential move to Super League rivals.
They could all take some advice from Mark Flanagan. The former Wigan Warriors, St Helens and Salford Red Devils forward revealed a story of how he created a false rumour about a move to Castleford Tigers that enabled him to get the contract he wanted from Salford Red Devils.
“They said, ‘Right Mark, you’re coming up to the end of the season, we will offer you another two seasons,'” he said on the Out of Your League podcast.
“I thought that I was playing quite well, starting every week, contributing a lot, so I thought I want a bit more money so I said to them that I wanted x amount and three more years and they said no way.
“So I realised that no one probably wanted me but I thought a bit of competition could drive the price up so my cousin and I were sat in a pub in Oldham and decided to spread a rumour that I was going to go to Castleford Tigers.
“He joins this fans forum and starts this rumour and said: “I’ve just seen Mark Flanagan down Wheldon Road, signing a contract.
“Next week it’s in the papers that I’m going to Cas and Salford got wind and said ‘right we’ll give you some more money if you’ll stay two more years’ and I said ‘ I need three.’
“And they go, ‘look you’re turning 30 in a few months, we don’t give 30 years three year contracts.’
“So I said ‘What about Junior Sa’u? He was 30 last week and you’ve just given him a three year contract’ and they went ‘right you can have three years.”
