Former Wigan Warriors centre Oliver Gildart has reunited with his former head coach Adrian Lam with the English centre joining Leigh Leopards on a short term contract until the end of the season.
Rumours of Gildart’s move arose on Friday and they quickly circulated, particularly around Craven Park, the home of Hull KR for whom Gildart has signed a contract with to play for in 2024 and beyond.
It quickly became clear that there was confusion around the proposed signing with Hull KR boss Willie Peters seemingly blindsided by it, something he confirmed in Rovers press conference on Tuesday.
“I was only aware of it on game day (Friday 28th) morning. It was the first I heard of it and that was it. So pretty much we hadn’t had any opportunity to sign Oli,” Peters told the media.
Just an hour after he said that it was confirmed that Gildart had joined the Leopards, with Leigh moving quickly to beat Friday’s registration deadline and to replace the injured Ricky Leutele who will miss the rest of the season.
Gildart has since linked up the Leopards squad and gave his first interview as a Leigh player explaining how the move happened.
Speaking to Leopards TV, he said: “I got off the flight yesterday, so nothing too much today. But yeah, it’s been real good so far.
“It was real quick to be fair. I think it was last Friday. My manager contacted me and said that Leigh had been in touch and certain circumstances suited me coming here as well. So yeah, it happened real fast and I was on the flight that day and here I am.”
Whilst Gildart won’t be able to play in the Challenge Cup Final as he wasn’t registered before the semi-finals, he did speak about Wembley and also the Leopards chasing down silverware, which could well come at the expense of his team for 2024 and beyond.
“Obviously, the boys have got a big back end of the season coming up, they’ve got Wembley coming up as well. So yeah, I hope I can just put my best foot forward and help the boys win whatever it takes.”
On the fans, Gildart added: “Keep turning up in numbers, I’ve been watching this year and the boys have got you to Wembley, so I’m sure they’ll all be in there in numbers and hopefully can stay until the end of the year as well and get some silverware.”
It’s certainly a strange transfer given what it means for the future but the opportunity to chase another Grand Final is a huge one whilst Gildart also credited the Adrian Lam factor and being closer to home as key motivators.
“I worked with him (Adrian Lam) at Wigan and we really have a good relationship off the field. It’s just an easier transition for me to come here. My parents live 10 minutes away, it’s kind of home for me around here anyway. So, yeah, it just made the move a lot more simple.”
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