Former Super League star set to retire

There have been few better players in Super League in recent times than James Maloney.

The halfback started his career with the Melbourne Storm and wherever he went for some time success followed.

In his days at the Storm, the club emerged as the dominant force in the NRL, though he was a bit part player leading to his move to the New Zealand Warriors where he instantly led the Warriors to the 2011 Grand Final.

This would begin to become a trend and the same happened as he joined the Sydney Roosters in 2013 guiding them to the Minor Premiership and Grand Final double alongside Mitchell Pearce.

In 2016 he again found a new club in the shape of the Cronulla Sharks and again delivered Grand Final glory instantly.

He would finish his NRL career with the Penrith Panthers helping nurture Nathan Cleary.

Maloney also had an unbelievable pedigree in representative rugby guiding New South Wales to State of Origin glory and playing for Australia.

In 2020 he joined Catalans Dragons and delivered play-off rugby for the first time since 2014 at the French club.

Then in 2021 he turned the Dragons into League Leaders’ Shield winners as they also reached the Grand Final. He was named in the Super League Dream Team but the Dragons fell short 12-10 in the Grand Final against St Helens.

That was Maloney’s last game as he joined Lezignan in the Elite One Championship in France as his former Roosters teammate Mitchell Pearce replaced him at Catalans.

However, after two seasons in the French competition he is set to retire according to Treize Mondial and pursue a career in coaching in the NRL.