Scott Taylor signs for Salford
Salford have confirmed that they have signed front-rower Scott Taylor from Wigan for 2015, on a one-year loan deal.
The former Hull KR man made his Super League debut in 2009, and joined Wigan in 2013.
“We are delighted to have signed Scott Taylor for 2015, it’ll be great to be working with him again,” said Salford coach Iestyn Harris.
“He has a fantastic temperament and has great potential to go far in the game. At 23, he has a wealth of Super League experience, including Challenge Cup and Grand Final appearances, so he brings a lot to the team.
“When I first heard that I had another opportunity to work with Scott I was overjoyed and I think he’ll be the final piece of the jigsaw for our 2015 Season.”
Wigan chairman Ian Lenagan also revealed that Taylor’s desire to leave the Warriors had become a distraction for the rest of the squad.
He also confirmed that a transfer fee for the loan deal had been agreed with Salford.
“We can confirm that Scott is leaving the Wigan club to join Salford Red Devils on a 12 months contract as replacement for his final contracted year at Wigan,” he said.
“We have been speaking with the player for several months after he made it clear that he wanted to leave, preferably a year earlier than contracted, to return to the Hull area for family reasons.
“Scott has improved as a player under the Wigan system and is a good prop forward but his desire to be elsewhere has become, and remains, a significant distraction to team spirit and to his own performance.
“With Lee Mossop recently returning to the club and an array of quality prop forwards now at our disposal, we are confident in the squad we have for the 2015 season.
“We have been able to negotiate a satisfactory transfer fee for a player who would otherwise have left for nothing in 12 months’ time.
“We have worked well with Marwan Koukash at Salford to achieve a mutually satisfactory conclusion to this difficult matter and wish Scott Taylor well.”
Wigan head coach Shaun Wane also felt that Taylor’s clear desire to leave Wigan had not been helpful.
“Scott expressed a desire to leave and whilst we made great efforts to help him change his approach his understandable need to meet his family obligations has remained the major factor in his decision,” he said.
“The arrival of additional good players at Wigan through some excellent recruitment has meant we can now allow him to leave.
“It is a pity to lose a player of Scott’s potential calibre early. He has really developed well in our system and he has done a great job for us but I am really happy with the make-up of my squad for next season as we look to go one step further at Old Trafford next October.”
Wigan’s rugby general manager Kri s Radlinski confirmed that Taylor had struggled to settle in Wigan after joining the Warriors.
“Scott originally expressed a desire to leave half way through last season because he and his partner missed their families and had struggled to settle in Wigan,” he said.
“I knew, through some deep subsequent conversations that he had his heart set on moving home as early as possible. Since squad planning at Wigan is medium and long-term, I had to put the Club first and secured Scott for 2015. However, I told him that if our position were to change then we would grant him an early release.
“Now, being in a strong position with the recruitment of Larne Patrick, Taulima Tautai and Lee Mossop and the return of James Greenwood, it was felt that the best thing for Wigan would be to allow Scott to leave.”