Warrington Wolves coach breaks silence on Brodie Croft transfer move

Warrington Wolves coach Sam Burgess has seemingly left the door ajar for a sensational move for Brodie Croft in 2027 – refusing to deny the club are in talks with the Leeds Rhinos star.

Croft has been heavily linked with a move across the Pennines to sign with the Wire on a long-term deal next year. The Warrington Guardian reported on Thursday morning that the Australian was on the verge of agreeing a contract with Burgess’ side.

It now appears a matter of when, not if, a switch to the Wolves is confirmed.

And while Burgess did not confirm or deny a move one way or the other, he admitted he was a huge admirer of Croft’s ability.

Burgess said in his weekly pre-match press conference: “Well he’s obviously a great player so.. I wasn’t actually aware of the speculation as well before speaking to you guys. But yeah, he’s a wonderful player. We’ll just see what happens there.”

Croft’s departure from AMT Headingley would leave the Rhinos with another huge hole to fill in their squad for 2027. It would likely represent a major blow, given how Brad Arthur said earlier this week that he felt if Croft were to stay in Super League, it would be Leeds that he would re-sign with.

But the half-back appears to have decided that his next move will be a lucrative switch to the Halliwell Jones Stadium for next year and beyond.

George Williams fitness update

The player Croft will replace at Warrington, England captain George Williams, will go in for surgery next week – and Burgess has laid out the possible timeframe on a recovery from his neck injury and whether it has prematurely ended his Wire career.

“George is due to go for surgery next week,” Burgess said.

“That gives us a start date with the recovery but it’s not as simple as when you get your shoulder or ankle done. There’s more complexity around the neck. It’s minimum 12 weeks. Let’s say it’s a minimum four weeks after that too so that would be the best-case timeframe.”