St Helens coach addresses Josh Papalii speculation as George Whitby dilemma raised

Paul Wellens has refused to comment on speculation that St Helens are closing in on a deal to sign Canberra Raiders icon Josh Papalii: but admits he is a player that he admires.

Reports in Australia have suggested that the Saints are about to lock Papalii in for 2026 and 2027 after he informed the Raiders he had no desire to play against them next year, with his time at the club drawing to a close.

That has put the Saints in pole position to beat off interest from NRL clubs to tie the former State of Origin forward down and bring him to Super League.

But Wellens played the reports with a straight bat on Friday when asked about his future by Love Rugby League.

He said: “All I can say is I’ve read the same thing as you. I can’t comment too much on speculation.”

When asked if Papalii was a player Wellens was a fan of, Wellens replied: “He’s amongst many players in the NRL I admire. He’s an international, he’s an Origin player and he’s done a lot of good in the game.”

Wellens also admitted the Saints are already underway with a number of off-contract overseas players for 2026. The likes of Agnatius Paasi, Curtis Sironen and Konrad Hurrell’s deals are all up later this year, leading to the prospect of a significant turnover in the Saints’ squad this winter.

Wellens said: “Discussions and interactions are always ongoing with player managers. It’s different for different individuals.

“In the coming weeks or the next couple of months we’ll start to make some final decisions. But in the meantime I don’t want to break confidence in the talks we’ve had with those players.”

The Saints face Salford on Sunday afternoon, and Wellens admitted he has a difficult dilemma to make about whether to bring young half-back George Whitby into the team again after he was cleared to return following a HIA that meant he missed last Friday’s win over Leeds.

Moses Mbye deputised in Whitby’s absence and Wellens said: “That’s a difficult decision. George has done a fantastic job in the eight or nine weeks he was in the team but it was one of our strongest performances last week.

“Moses and Jonny (Lomax) were excellent – it’s a tough decision I’m going to have to make.”

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