Jahrome Hughes won’t make any public pitches to Storm teammate Cameron Munster to convince him to stay at the club, with the star halves likely to come up against each other on Thursday in the World Cup opener in Sydney.
Munster is off contract at the end of 2027 and is set to hit the open market on November 1 whee he’ll find out what his value is.
The veteran five-eighth could still end up staying in Melbourne, but he’s got a few big weeks before any of that, with Australia and New Zealand to clash in a blockbuster bout at Allianz Stadium.
“It’s always weird going up against Mun,” Hughes said.
“We haven’t played against each other too many times, only probably when we played against Australia in the last couple of years. It’s always good to go up against him, though.
“We train against each other a lot, and you want to test yourself against the best, and he’s definitely one of the best.
“I don’t need to pitch anything to him. He already knows what he means to me and what he means to our club, so I’ll leave that on a personal note, not in the media.”
Hughes is thrilled to be back in the Kiwis jersey for the first time since 2023 when New Zealand destroyed the Kangaroos 30-0.
He’s dealt with ongoing hamstring issues this season that have restricted the former Dally M Medal winner to just 18 appearances for his club.
But he says he’s fully fit and is looking forward to representing his country once more.
“It is really special,” he said.
“I dreamt of putting these colours on since I was a young kid. I think I’ve had a couple of years away from it, and it just makes you realise you can’t take this jersey for granted.
“Every time from now on I’m lucky enough to put it on, I’ll be really cherishing it, so it’s good to be back.
“There’s always a bit of fear about missing these camps, especially with a few niggles that I did have this year.
“I picked up a little one in our last game of the season, which was only a little one. We were in a stage where we couldn’t make finals, and it was probably just a smarter thing to come off, so it wasn’t too bad.”
The Kiwis haven’t won the World Cup since 2008, with the pain of their semi-final loss to Australia four years ago still driving the team.
Hughes scored the first try in that game but couldn’t come up with the winner as the Kangaroos held on to win by two points.
“It’s more not thinking about it as a bad thing, it’s more fuelling that fire and making sure that doesn’t happen again,” he said.
“What happened to us in that last World Cup, I feel like it’s worked for me already just with preparation and just my mindset going into this tournament.
“I cherish every time I get to put this jersey on, but just being in camp with the boys, it’s always a good couple of weeks.
“The last couple of years have been tough with different injuries and not being able to play, and just missing out on the camps, enjoying each other’s company, and playing some good footy.
“I’m one of the older guys now, but I felt like a little kid coming back into camp and seeing everyone.”
Originally published as ‘I don’t need to pitch anything to him’: Jahrome Hughes responds to Munster rumours as he prepares to make Kiwis return