Former World Cup winner David Klemmer is ready to make an immediate impact with St Helens, and has already set his sights on a major trophy that he wants to achieve whilst at the Red Vee.
Klemmer joins Paul Rowley’s squad on a two-year deal, and is an established NRL veteran in his own right, making 260 appearances in the Aussie competition, as well as being a 14-time New South Wales prop and a 19-time Kangaroo.
The 31-year is one of a few overseas imports brought in by Saints this off-season, as he joins Jacob Host and Jackson Hastings in making the move to the BrewDog Stadium.
He will wear the number 13 jersey in 2026, which was vacated by Morgan Knowles’ departure to NRL side the Dolphins. Whether he will play in the loose forward role, or in the front row, remains to be seen, with the club also having Jake Wingfield and Joe Shorrocks who can be used to cover the huge hole left in the squad by the England international.
Klemmer gave his first interview since arriving in the UK to Saints’ club media, and admitted he is already impressed by what he has seen from his new teammates. After watching from the sidelines in his first week, before getting his pre-season underway shortly after, he said:
“I’m pretty excited for the year and the playing group… I’ve come a bit late, but I’ve been following it on the Whatsapp and the scheduling, and all the boys are smashing it in training, especially those young blokes.
“They are fit and firing, and they’ve some fire in their bellies right across the board, so the squad is looking really good, and I’ve seen training today, it was awesome. They got a great hit out and had good intensity and we’re building for a good year.”
Explaining his move to the Northern Hemisphere, he revealed he has always been a fan of the competition, and believes it is a good move both personally and professionally.
“It’s always something that’s been on the bucket list, to come over. I’m a mad footy head, so I remember as a kid watching Super League, and I’m a bity footy, NRL and Super League fan so when [the opportunity] came up, my wife was pretty excited to come over and experience it, and what a great club to come to in St Helens.”
Whilst a Super League title will no doubt be on Klemmer’s goals for 2026, the Challenge Cup is one thing that the veteran wants to tick off during his time at the club, with the knockout competition something that doesn’t occur in Australia.
Commenting on his hopes for this season, the former Australian international said: “Winning games. Winning footy games, that makes everyone’s life a lot better. You can have a lot of fun, but winning games, that makes the whole week, so it would be good to have a good, successful season.
“I follow the Challenge Cup as well, so winning that, that will be up on the bucket list, and having a good season with St Helens would be awesome.”
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