Apparently souths are willing to let Tom burgess go. It's a no brainer to get him over if it's all true cuthbo wants to leave to go back to nrl.

If Cuthbo does want to get an NRL gig, he needs to pull out some decent performances and put himself in the shop window.

I'd be surprised if there was a queue of sides from the NRL lining up for Cuthbertson.

Might have been at the end of last season, but he's looked mentally and physically off the pace when he's played this year. Outplayed significantly by Garbutt and at times Galloway too.

If Souths are going to let Tom go, I wouldn't be surprised to see him land at another NRL club. Is his Mum still out there, or did she come back when Sam did?

really Can't see him coming back to SL myself, especially with his best years ahead of him.

I agree with you all but it would be good to get him in . And yes I think garbutt as outplayed all our props this year

Wouldn't Tom Burgess be classed as club trained? If that's the case, how much of his salary would count on our cap?

The aussie media claims that he is on 500k Australian Dollar per season so at £272k he will not be coming back to superleague any time soon !

Club trained players need to have completed three full seasons at the club before the age of 21. Dispensation is only £5k per player, up to a maximum of £100k per season. Not sure how long Burgess was at Leeds, but it may not have been long enough to complete three full seasons.

His time at Leeds combined with his two seasons at Bradford though would make him Federation trained and obviously he's not on the overseas quota either.

A club trained Marquee player would only count £100k on the cap, rather than £175k

Souths say they will pay off the rest of his contract as (at 500k a year for a 40-50 min prop) he has probably ended up over valued due to his back ended contract
Having said that, I assume another NRL team will come in for him

Whilst I think he will be good, I actually don't think his game suits SL as much as the NRL as defences here are allowed to slow the tackle more, which nullifies a player who's greatest asset is creating quick ptb

I cant imagine he'll be rushing back to the UK any time soon.

Tom has never reached the heights of George. He's solid but not worth as much as he's on, and I'd guess the feeling is that with the reduction of interchanges you can't afford to carry two huge guys any more (especially on a massive wedge).

Sam Burgess leaving and then returning to Souths has been awful for them. He's come back at short notice which required getting rid of some good players. He has yet to show much in the way of repaying their faith in him, although I think an off season where he focuses on regaining his strength will work wonders (all that messing about in RU and trying to become a centre has seen him lose a lot of brute strength).

Souths' problems though are more linked to their halfbacks IMO. Reynolds would go very well with a creative halfback, but Keary has been really poor for two years and Inglis is seemingly on a downward spiral now he's lost the edge physically (not to mention that Johnston isn't much cop as an attacking fullback). They're just a very robotic team that generally look easy to defend against.

If Tom is available and interested in any way in SL then I imagine most teams will be sniffing around.

I for one would love to see him at Leeds and think he would be a great asset. To my knowledge we haven't used the marquee rule so could work out how to get him in financially.

However, a hb still looks the priority for me so much as he could be a good signing we need to focus elsewhere.

Although i agree with you regards comparing with George, i thought Tom showed what he is capable of when he really shone in the test series at the end of last year. Like you say, he is probably not worth as much as he is on, but i would wager another NRL team will give him something close. his best years are yet to come for me and a move away from the 'Burgess Souths cocoon' may do him the world of good.

How many props do Leeds need?

Surely a half back is the real requirement - unless GH thinks Sutcliffe/Lilley are the answer?

What happens if Segeyaro does get a contract in the NRL and you have used up a big slice of cap on yet another prop?

A hooker and a half back must be the priority for next season if the club want to improve on what has been a dreadful season