St Helens man Morgan Knowles has spoken about the motivations behind his end-of-season move to the NRL, admitting that he’s leaving at a time when the club have “success on the horizon”.
As such, Knowles explained that made the decision even harder but ultimately conceded that he does not wish to have any regrets in the future, explaining he’d rather head Down Under and have the move fail than not go at all and be left wondering.
Plenty of English talents have left for the NRL in recent years but few have done so at the age that Knowles is with the loose forward arguably in his prime years, set to turn 29 at the end of the year, and he conceded that was also a factor in him signing for the Dolphins.
Speaking to SaintsTV, he declared his love for St Helens, the club and town that he has called home since leaving his home county of Cumbria and joining the Red Vee when he was just 15 years of age.
“I haven’t got a bad word to say about the club, so that’s what makes it extra hard to leave,” Knowles explained, adding: “It’s just an opportunity for me that I thought was something that I couldn’t turn down for me and my family.”
St Helens man explains NRL exit decision despite “success on the horizon” claim
The deal was confirmed at the end of February with Knowles linking up with his former coach Kristian Woolf on a two-year deal and the St Helens star had admitted that the ‘what if’ questions he would ask himself played a major part in the move.
He explained: “I think that was a big reason. At the age I am now, I knew this would be my last and only opportunity. I would rather go and it not work out and regret that decision than not do it and regret what could have been.
“Like I said, it is so difficult because I see where Saints are at the minute. We’ve had amazing success over that period, and I feel like we’re building again and working towards that, so it’s not as if I’m walking away from Saints and think there’s not going to be success on the horizon, because I think there is.
“There’s lots of reasons that come into it but definitely not to regret is one of them.”
He’s the highest-profile exit from St Helens that has been confirmed, although others such as James Bell have been reported, however, Knowles confirmed that it may not be the end of his St Helens story.
“Never say never about coming back,” he said, adding: “I’ve got nothing bad to say about the club.
“I’ve tried to deal with this move as respectfully and openly and honestly as I can. I think the club appreciate that. I’ve got a lot of respect for them and vice versa. So I think that door will always be open.
“Potentially it could be the future, but we’ll wait and see what happens.”
One man who famously left St Helens for the NRL before coming back in a swansong year to lift the Grand Final was James Graham and should Knowles be able to emulate his success Down Under, then he’ll have had an excellent stint in the NRL.
