Released Castleford Tigers man joins Championship club as he links up with former boss

Sheffield Eagles have already announced a flurry of signings this week, and they aren’t done yet, after announcing a fourth new addition for 2026 that will see recently released Castleford Tigers man Josh Hodson link up with a former coach. 

The Eagles, now led by Craig Lingard, will be hoping to improve on their lacklustre 2025 season that saw them finish 11th in the regular campaign. Signings such as York duo Joe Brown and Conor Fitzsimmons will aid that push, and they have now added another man with Super League experience to their ranks.

Centre Hodson found life at the Tigers difficult, as he battled injuries and poor form. Starting his career at London in 2020, the 25-year-old made a switch to Batley Bulldogs in 2022, where he first worked under Lingard.

Since then, he has followed the 47-year-old everywhere he’s been. In 2024, when Lingard left Batley to join Castleford on a full-time basis, Hodson followed suit, signing a two-year deal.

Lingard was sacked after one year at the Tigers, as Danny McGuire picked up his first senior coaching gig. He then moved back down to the Championship and took over at Sheffield Eagles, replacing long-serving coach Mark Aston.

Meanwhile Hodson’s 2025 season didn’t go as planned as he made just five appearances for the Tigers. First moving on loan to Widnes Vikings, the centre ended the year at the Eagles on loan, reuniting with his former boss once again.

Making seven appearances to round off his campaign, Hodson has decided to make that move permanent following the expiration of his contract, and has now signed a two-year deal with Sheffield to continue his career.

Released Castleford Tigers man hoping to “kick on straight away” as new club revealed

Speaking on his move, and the fact he will work with Lingard once again, he said:  “I really enjoyed my time here on loan last season, and when the option came up to come back, I thought why not.

“I’ve had Linners [Lingard] at both Batley and Castleford; he knows how to get the best out of me and how I work as a player. I know what his standards are and what he’s expecting of me, so hopefully it makes it really easy for me to kick on straight away here.”

The coach also had his say: “I’ve worked with Josh at both Batley and Castleford now, he’s a physical threat and a presence on an edge. He’s very strong defensively, and he’s got some great second-phase offloads in attack that he can bring into the side.

“After the last couple of seasons where he’s not really played a lot, it’s a chance for him to really have a good season with us where he can try and build that confidence back. I think that Sheffield is the perfect environment for him to be able to do that over the next two years.”

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