Leigh confirm Cunningham, Lovett and Mortimer exits
Leigh have confirmed Keiron Cunningham, Kyle Lovett and Daniel Mortimer have all left the club by mutual consent.
Cunningham, 41, joined the club as head of rugby a year ago after a short stint as coach of his hometown club St Helens.
On the departure of Cunningham, Leigh owner Derek Beaumont said: “I would like to thank Keiron for his time at the club.
“He has been very loyal to me and was devastated by the shortcomings of the squad. He has received a lot of criticism about the recruitment but that was done collectively with Neil Jukes and myself and the players have shown they were good enough at times, in particular against Wigan and Saints in pre-season and then Salford in the Challenge Cup.
“He feels very much for me and the position this has left the club in and realises that it can’t survive unless the contracts it’s obligated to are removed.
“To that end he has terminated his contract with immediate effect having worked hard in the transfer week to find other clubs for some of the higher earners.”
Mortimer, 29, moved to England in the closing stages of last season from Cronulla Sharks. He scored nine tries in 19 games for the Centurions.
While Lovett, 25, joined Leigh from Wests Tigers in the off-season after making 50 appearances in the NRL. He played 10 times for the Centurions, scoring four tries.
On the exits of the Australian pair, Beaumont added: “I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Daniel Mortimer and Kyle Lovett who have also accepted some responsibility and terminated their contracts in the best interests of the club going forward to return home with no short-term future.
“I would also like to thank Peter Mata’utia, Harrison Hansen, Bodene Thompson, Jordan Thompson, Ben Crooks and Craig Hall for their time at the club and for agreeing to move to other clubs, terminating deals that went beyond this year and making personal sacrifices in the best interests of the club.
“I wish all of them well and hope Keiron can return to the game in the near future as I believe he has a lot to offer it and the sport can’t afford to lose its former stars.”