Ex-Wigan Warriors and Salford Red Devils star Jackson Hastings suffers huge blow

Former Wigan Warriors and Salford Red Devils star Jackson Hastings has been one of Wests Tigers’ brightest sparks in 2022 so far.

After leaving the Super League at the end of 2021, Hastings was given an opportunity by the Tigers to resurrect his NRL career after almost four years in the UK.

Since then, the halfback has been on fire, taking the pressure off fellow halfback partner Luke Brooks as well as helping off the field with community work and things that are rarely seen in the public eye.

However, he has been pictured this week in a moonboot and strapping around his leg with Hastings in serious doubt to play in Wests’ fixture with the South Sydney Rabbitohs this weekend.

If the Australian misses, it would be a big loss for Wests who have come to rely on the maverick’s running and passing game to create the big plays.

The former Man of Steel has been a big hit at the Tigers with his swap from number 6 to number 7 doing wonders for Wests and that has piqued the interest of NRL rivals – particularly Canterbury Bulldogs whose form has been rotten in 2022 so far.

The Bulldogs sit bottom of the NRL ladder and Australian rugby league legend Andrew Johns believes Hastings will be number one target for Phil Gould at Belmore.

“You probably look at that and you probably say Jackson Hastings,” Johns told the World Wide of Sports.

“He’s the one they’ll have to go after but to get him out of the Tigers, because there isn’t so much depth in the competition at halfback, you probably have to pay $800-$900,000-a-season or even more to get Jackson out of the Tigers.”