Super League halfback “unlikely” to play for current club again as exit is confirmed

There have been reports that Castleford Tigers would be letting go of one of their halfbacks and they have now been confirmed.

Callum McLelland started his career with the Tigers before taking the leap to rugby union. He impressed there and was highly sought after and eventually signed at Leeds Rhinos where injuries got in the way.

In his final game he suffered a nasty injury that meant when he signed for Castleford going into 2022, that he was injured and unable to play for the Tigers once in his first season.

Injuries have resurfaced again and again and now he is set to leave the club with the Tigers not offering him a deal for 2024.

“It’s really disappointing, I’m really disappointed for Callum as a lad,” coach Andy Last said as he confirmed the news on BBC Radio Leeds.

“He signed whilst he was injured, he’d picked up the injury playing against Wakefield and obviously the club honoured their agreement and took him on in the hope that he’d be able to get back to a playing level he was capable of.

“That unfortunately hasn’t happened in the couple of years that he’s been with us. He’s still confident he can get back on the training field.

“He’s in rehab and running at the minute to get himself fully fit with a view to getting something potentially elsewhere but it’s a real shame for Castleford.

“Unfortunately that’s the nature of our sport and it just hasn’t quite worked out for Callum.”

Asked if there was any chance he’ll play this season, Last said: “It’s unlikely. He’s starting a process in terms of his rehabilitation and he’s just going to use this time between now and the end of the season to get himself fully right with a view to dusting off the boots and hopefully getting back playing and fixed up with a club for next season.

“There’s other stuff in and around the kneecap, he’s tweaked a little bit of a quad which is obviously an attachment to the patella tendon.

“Every time it gets to the point where you think we can crank it up a little bit unfortunately he’s not able to tolerate the load so he’s had a couple of setbacks, it’s just a very very tough injury to get over.

“It’s been awful, poor old Callum has spent a fair bit of time on his own with injury. These things happen in sport, it’s the sad nature of professional sport. In terms of his resilience and character he’s ripped into his rehab and hopefully he’ll be back on the field able to perform soon.”