Which will be the interesting point no doubt. It’ll be easier I imagine to stay on the straight and narrow while you’re earning a deal either here or elsewhere, but if Zak does find himself in a comfortable situation, say a 2 year deal at the end, that’s when I’d worry he might go off the rails.

Conversely if he can’t stay sorted for even this short period of time, when on the surface the thing unsettling him (being out of Yorkshire) is fixed, then literally no one should touch him.

That’s exactly what I had in my head. Play well and keep nose clean, 2 year deal end of season….

I'm Ok with this for now, although I'd rather we didn't have to consider him. I wonder if we'll suddenly find out one of the injured players is even worse than thought, or one of our overseas players wants to go home.

He’s better than Sutcliffe by a country mile at centre and he’s better than either of our fullbacks. I’d play him centre with Myler at FB when everyone fit. I like what Myler brings creatively at FB but I’m sure Rohan will be looking at that

Good call and that could well be how we’ll go. By eck we’ll look a lot stronger soon…!

Short term deal is a winner all round. It will be 6 months and he will have another brain fart.

This is an odd one isn't it? I've been concerned about FB for some time now, and although Zak isn't at his peak he is still a very handy player and upgrades us quite a bit IMO.

The guy has had heaps of support throughout his career but can't seem to find a way to change (or at least not enough). I don't really have a problem with this as a pragmatic signing for this season; it's one of those "stars aligning" situations. He won't be right for the culture going forward but he's a good player and he isn't the devil.

He talks like Carey Grant if his statement is anything to go by!

I'd be very, very surprised if this was extended beyond the rest of this season. It's purely transactional - we're not looking for a long-term relationship.

To be fair to him, he has been at Wigan for 4 years. Keeping his discipline in check until this season and what has actually happened i doubt we will ever know. I suspect it is just a case of throwing his teddy out the pram causing him to act the way he has to force Wigans hand into releasing him

Believe!

Good point. His 4 years at Wigan have been very good on and off the field.

I'm a long way from being a Hardaker the person fan. I've heard enough stories about him round Fev and Ponte to know he's a complete and utter tit.

But I also know that morals and professional sport don't go hand in hand. People saying the club won't get relegated - it's still a very real possibility. And with the financial challenges the club has faced and still has to overcome, not being sat at the top table could have long lasting consequences on the club. So what do/can they do?

He isn't a great role model for the young lads, but at the same time, having to play 17 year olds because we literally have noone else isn't good for them either. Short term, he'll hopefully be keeping his head down and staying out of trouble. And like with any kids, you hope they have enough about them and have been brought up well enough to be able to see the right from wrong. There are still plenty of good influences at the club who will have had their ears for a long time.

A contract to the end of the year? I can deal with that. Anything beyond would be very disappointing. Not necessarily because of who he is, but because it would once again look like there wasn't a long term plan to refresh the squad. There's plenty of talent sat on the sidelines or waiting for a year of development. We shouldn't need him past this season

This is a decent deal all round.
I can see both sides of the argument.
Yes it smacks of desperation - but we're desperate!

He can put himself in the shop window for 6 months, as long as he behaves himself.
I think he'll go pretty well - and seems to avoid bad injuries, which we currently don't have in the back line...

As long as the club isn't stupid enough to offer him an extension.
That would be madness - he'll just revert to type.
Do the 6 months and play for a deal with whoever gets promoted (Fev, Leigh or York). He can be their 2023 poster boy.

Have they? He's been causing trouble for two years in an attempt to get closer to his mates (Not family) in Yorkshire. He has a rap sheet longer than the honours board at Wigan. They've been considering exiting him for years, hence the signing of two fullbacks from the NRL.