{"id":395663,"date":"2026-01-28T21:05:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T21:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/395663\/"},"modified":"2026-01-28T21:05:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T21:05:13","slug":"catalans-dragons-signing-reveals-former-leeds-rhinos-fandom-as-nrl-switch-verdict-given","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/395663\/","title":{"rendered":"Catalans Dragons signing reveals former Leeds Rhinos fandom as NRL switch verdict given"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/S4A1077.jpg\" class=\"attachment- size- wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"  \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>One of Catalans Dragons\u2019 13 new signings has revealed his Leeds Rhinos\u2019 fandom and discussed his switch from the NRL, hailing it as \u2018probably one of the best decisions I\u2019ve ever made\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>Of the current Super League clubs that also featured in the 2025 season, Catalans D<a href=\"https:\/\/www.seriousaboutrl.com\/rugby-league-news-every-super-league-transfer-for-2026-signings-departures-111572\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ragons have had the largest turnover with 13 signings and 14 departures<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Plenty of those signings have come from overseas with seven of their 13 recruits hailing from down under, including Wests Tigers recruit Solomona Faataape. He\u2019s not the only outside back to arrive in the south of France from the Tigers with teammate Charlie Staines also signing, something that Faataape admitted has made the move easier.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lindependant.fr\/2026\/01\/25\/rugby-a-xiii-solomona-faataape-le-grand-saut-australien-qui-seduit-deja-les-dragons-catalans-13173331.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">L\u2019Independant<\/a> in France, the 25-year-old admitted to nerves when making the switch but just three months in, he\u2019s totally at ease and ready to kick on in his debut year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was a bit nervous, it was a big step,\u201d Faataape said, before quickly adding: \u201cIt\u2019s probably one of the best decisions I\u2019ve ever made.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Catalans Dragons signing embracing pressure<\/p>\n<p>Those nerves were quickly eradicated by what he described as an \u2018easy transition\u2019, adding: \u201cThe club really welcomed me from day one. When you arrive so far from home, it means a lot. They trusted me, and I won\u2019t forget that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With so many new faces, Faataape was happy to see a familiar one when Staines arrived, admitting he felt \u2018more at ease\u2019 whilst he also admitted to being a Leeds Rhinos fan, quickly noting: \u201cBut that was before.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s now immersed in the culture of the Dragons: \u201cA club like the Dragons, with such a rich history, is a fantastic opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a good kind of pressure and I don\u2019t want to disappoint the supporters.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been given an incredible opportunity. I want to give everything for this jersey and for these people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Fans will get a first chance to see Faataape when <a href=\"https:\/\/www.seriousaboutrl.com\/rugby-league-news-challenge-cup-round-three-fixtures-in-full-as-super-league-clubs-learn-opponents-112067\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Catalans make the trip over to face Batley in the third round of the Challenge Cup<\/a>, before they then welcome Huddersfield Giants to the Stade Gilbert Brutus a week later to open up their Super League campaign.<\/p>\n<p>Check out the latest episode of The Serious About Rugby League Show on\u00a0<a class=\"in-cell-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=m49dbMBwBak\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">our YouTube channel here.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1768085712_213_srl-logo.png\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of Catalans Dragons\u2019 13 new signings has revealed his Leeds Rhinos\u2019 fandom and discussed his switch from&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":357904,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[5903,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-395663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-rugby","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395663","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=395663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395663\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/357904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=395663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=395663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=395663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}