{"id":346241,"date":"2026-01-01T11:04:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-01T11:04:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/346241\/"},"modified":"2026-01-01T11:04:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-01T11:04:11","slug":"in-demand-leigh-leopards-star-amid-2026s-biggest-transfer-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/346241\/","title":{"rendered":"In-demand Leigh Leopards star amid 2026’s biggest transfer stories"},"content":{"rendered":"

Another new year is upon us, but little changes in the world of rugby league: over the next 12 months or so there are some HUGE decisions to be made \u2013 and some massive transfer stories.<\/p>\n

Here, we\u2019ve picked out seven of the biggest stories to look out for in 2026\u2026<\/p>\n

Want more Love Rugby League? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> and ensure you never miss our exclusives and breaking news!<\/p>\n

Brad Arthur<\/p>\n

\"Leeds<\/p>\n

Leeds Rhinos coach Brad Arthur<\/p>\n

It was among the sagas of 2025, and it promises to be among them again in 2026. Having signed a one-year extension for the season ahead, will Brad Arthur stay at Headingley as Leeds Rhinos<\/a>\u2018 head coach beyond the end of the 2026 campaign?<\/p>\n

And no, journalists \u2013 including us \u2013 undoubtedly won\u2019t stop asking him all year until a verdict is reached.<\/p>\n

Sam Burgess<\/p>\n

There are just two Super League<\/a> head coaches off-contract as we approach the 2026 season, Arthur and Warrington Wolves\u2019 Sam Burgess.<\/p>\n

NRL and England icon Burgess has made no secret of his desire to earn a first-grade job Down Under eventually, but his Wire<\/a> side will have to deliver much better than they did last season if he\u2019s to stand any chance of that coming soon.<\/p>\n

Will he stay? Will he decide to go? Or will he even last the season if the Wolves are as poor this year as they were on the whole in 2025?<\/p>\n

Brodie Croft<\/p>\n

\"Brodie<\/p>\n

Brodie Croft warms up ahead of a Leeds Rhinos game in 2025<\/p>\n

Another big story is whether Leeds can tie down Australian playmaker Croft beyond the end of 2026, which is when his current deal runs out.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s been outstanding in his time at Headingley so far, and is \u2013 of course \u2013 a former Man of Steel having scooped that accolade as a Salford player. But will the Rhinos be able to keep him having already tied down Jake Connor with an improved contact?<\/p>\n

Umyla Hanley<\/p>\n

It comes as no surprise given the form he displayed in 2025 that Leigh<\/a> centre Hanley, another who is off-contract, is already believed to be attracting interest from elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Hull FC have entered the race for his signature, so it\u2019s up to the Leopards now to table a suitable offer his way. We\u2019re sure his relationship with Adrian Lam will be beneficial, but various other factors will be at play in the deal, too.<\/p>\n

Jackson Hastings<\/p>\n

\"Jackson<\/p>\n

Jackson Hastings warms up ahead of a Newcastle Knights game in 2025<\/p>\n

Hastings\u2019 sensational return to Super League was announced on November 20. Within 11 days, as a result of only penning a one-year deal, he was able to ink another deal elsewhere for 2027 and beyond.<\/p>\n

The contract system is utterly bonkers if you ask us, but it does mean that St Helens<\/a> have a question to answer over whether they\u2019d like the veteran playmaker to stick around longer than the 12 months he\u2019s set to currently.<\/p>\n

Arriving from Newcastle Knights, Hastings is another ex-Super League Man of Steel, and Paul Rowley\u2019s job is to help him rediscover that type of form as swiftly as possible.<\/p>\n

Perth Bears\/PNG Chiefs<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t one individual, but it\u2019s surefire to be a huge story in the world of rugby league transfers. Who will the Bears and the Chiefs snap up as they gear up for their entries into the NRL<\/a> in 2027 and 2028 respectively.<\/p>\n

We already know of a few Super League stars heading for Perth<\/a> next year, including Leeds\u2019 Harry Newman, and there\u2019ll be more to come.<\/p>\n

When it comes to the Chiefs<\/a>, they still need a head coach \u2013 Jason Demetriou and Adrian Lam will be in the mix. Then, we\u2019ll see about the players they sniff around.<\/p>\n

Tristan Sailor<\/p>\n

\"Tristan<\/p>\n

Tristan Sailor scores a try for St Helens in 2025<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve mentioned one Saints decision already with Hastings, but fellow back Sailor \u2013 whose contract is expiring \u2013 is another who has a question mark hanging over his future.<\/p>\n

Whether 2025 was a success for him or not would appear a subjective question, but the truth of the matter is that under Paul Wellens, it never really worked with the jigsaw pieces available. Square pegs in round holes comes to mind.<\/p>\n

Whether new head coach Rowley can solve that jigsaw, which now also has the piece of Hastings added to the mix, remains to be seen. And if he does, will Sailor fit into it?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Another new year is upon us, but little changes in the world of rugby league: over the next…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":346242,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[5903,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-346241","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-rugby","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=346241"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346241\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/346242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=346241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=346241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=346241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}