Is underfire Penrith Panthers star Jaeman Salmon – labelled a ‘weak-gutted dog’ by rival coach – heading for Super League?

He has been hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons lately, but is underfire Penrith Panthers star Jaeman Salmon heading for Super League?

The playmaker was of course at the centre of controversy in the NRL when Canberra Raiders boss Ricky Stuart labelled him a ‘weak-gutted dog’ in the aftermath of Penrith’s win over Canberra.

That hostility goes back a number of years from when Stuart’s son was involved in a fracas with Salmon at a young age, but Start himself has now been fined $25,000 and ordered to stay away from Canberra for a week.

On a side note, The Mole at the Wide World of Sports has reported that Salmon could be heading for the exit from the Blue Mountains – though it is not related to the Stuart attack.

Instead, with Jarome Luai and Nathan Cleary dominating proceedings at Penrith – and will likely continue to do so for a decade – chances have been extremely limited for Salmon.

And, with the playmaker looking at fellow star Sean O’Sullivan’s deal at the Dolphins for the next three years, it is only natural that Salmon wants to test the waters as a free agent at the end of the 2022 NRL season.

A Sydney-based club is expected to put an offer in to coax Salmon out of Penrith, but there is also the option of a big move to Super League.

At just 23 years of age, to have this amount of negative publicity can only harm a player, and, much like former Wigan Warriors and Salford Red Devils. hero Jackson Hastings, a move to the UK would undoubtedly be a breath of fresh air for the Penrith man.

Recently, younger NRL players have been dedicated to testing the waters in Super League with Newcastle Knights’ Tex Hoy just one of those making the leap for 2023 at just 23, too.

For Salmon, it is indeed an option and one which would have a number of Super League clubs queueing out of the door for him.