Leigh Leopards boss provides hint on uncertain future of off-contract star

Leigh Leopards boss Adrian Lam expects to have clarity on what the future holds for Josh Charnley in ‘the near future’.

Charnley is in the final year of his contract at Leigh Sports Village and it’s fair to say he has struggled for traction and momentum this season for the club. The winger has made just six appearances in all competitions with injury ruling him out for the majority of the opening two months of the season.

As his contract ticks down, the 33-year-old’s future has come into focus with this season potentially being his last at Leigh. If he is to leave he would do so as a modern day Leigh great, having scored 56 tries in 73 games so far for the Leopards.

That figure includes six in the Championship to help the club back into Super League and 30 in all competitions during the club’s memorable first year back in the top flight.

Whether he sticks around at Leigh beyond the end of the campaign remains to be seen, though, with Lam appearing non-committal when asked about the winger’s future in a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.

Leigh Leopards boss on Josh Charnley’s contract and future

“Josh has always been in the top one, two or three players in the time that he’s been here,” Lam told journalists about Charnley, who sits second on the list of Super League all-time tryscorers with 249. “He’s brought us a lot of experience, he’s a champion bloke and he’s also got some great tries.

“Where Josh goes to after this year, as a club we’ll make that decision in the near future.

“The issue is that we’ve got so many good outside-backs coming through with the likes of Bailey Hodgson, Keanan Brand’s now in the picture, and there’s also Darnell McIntosh that we’ve got to fit in there.

“Then there’s young players such as AJ Towse, who I think is a Super League player and the future. There’s a lot to decide as a club, but for Josh, his career so far has been incredible. He’s a big part of what we do.

“I think Josh knows he’s off-contract and it’s a long season ahead of us. I want to play all of those players and make sure that we make the right decisions.”

🔥 JOSH CHARNLEY, TAKE. A. BOW.

Career try number 300. What a player. @LeighLeopardsRL | #SuperLeague pic.twitter.com/su94N52fr4

— Betfred (@Betfred) May 10, 2024