English and French talent boom?

[Gobsmacked]

With the addition of 2 extra English clubs and a French club, we're talking about 90 full time first grade spots up for grabs!

Usually we will see expansion teams in the UK and France quickly reach into the NRL discard draw for talent..
but with the NRL salary cap gap expanding further and the addition of Perth and PNG.. that discard draw is running dry!
Infact it's causing a reverse of talent flows, Notably the big moves being made by Perth for those discards and even some of Englands top talent!

So where will the English and French find talent?
The answer is simple, Their own backyard.
Young players on the fringe will certainly be thrust into a first grade opportunity and clubs will be forced to focus on their junior programs to secure and develop talent. And while the top talent is scooped up by NRL clubs like Perth to play in the best Rugby comp in the world, that can only be a good thing for those players potential.

So in 5 or 6 years we could be seeings some serious talent being generated in Europe if it's managed correctly.

 

[Ian Douglas]

With the addition of 2 extra English clubs and a French club, we're talking about 90 full time first grade spots up for grabs!

Usually we will see expansion teams in the UK and France quickly reach into the NRL discard draw for talent..
but with the NRL salary cap gap expanding further and the addition of Perth and PNG.. that discard draw is running dry!
Infact it's causing a reverse of talent flows, Notably the big moves being made by Perth for those discards and even some of Englands top talent!

So where will the English and French find talent?
The answer is simple, Their own backyard.
Young players on the fringe will certainly be thrust into a first grade opportunity and clubs will be forced to focus on their junior programs to secure and develop talent. And while the top talent is scooped up by NRL clubs like Perth to play in the best Rugby comp in the world, that can only be a good thing for those players potential.

So in 5 or 6 years we could be seeings some serious talent being generated in Europe if it's managed correctly.

Super league clubs will start looking at PNG, NSW&queensland cup.

 

[Gobsmacked]

Super league clubs will start looking at PNG, NSW&queensland cup.

They will and are but those resources are strained as it is and now more so with the Bears and PNG.
PNG Chiefs are going to drain the SL of these guys come November this year when PNG officially are able to bid for talent.
15 million tax free, that's equivalent of 3 SL clubs.

Easiest and cheapest way to fill a roster will be through local systems, they can't complete with the NRL anymore.

 

[Gobsmacked]

Likely coaches for a PNG franchise too are probably going someone coaching SL.
They'll have their fingers on the pulse of SL talent and take plenty over to the Chiefs, especially Lam with his PNG roots.

 

[Ian Douglas]

They will and are but those resources are strained as it is and now more so with the Bears and PNG.
PNG Chiefs are going to drain the SL of these guys come November this year when PNG officially are able to bid for talent.
15 million tax free, that's equivalent of 3 SL clubs.

Easiest and cheapest way to fill a roster will be through local systems, they can't complete with the NRL anymore.

I’ve been banging the drum of investing locally in grassroots RL for decades but unfortunately the game over here just doesn’t have the funds to do so and what little money clubs have they just throw at short-term cheap overseas fixes.

 

[Ian Douglas]

Likely coaches for a PNG franchise too are probably going someone coaching SL.
They'll have their fingers on the pulse of SL talent and take plenty over to the Chiefs, especially Lam with his PNG roots.

100%

supervleague and championship clubs will lose the best of the kumuls playing over here and these will just be replaced by players from the hunters and Queensland cup who don’t get picked up by the chiefs.

 

[Taking The Two]

We’re experiencing a boom, though I’m not sure it’s the one people expected or are particularly fond of, especially in the immediate aftermath of getting a 3-0 slapping off the Australians in the Ashes. Theoretically, there were a maximum of 84 players allowed in Super League in 2025 that fell under the quota criteria. This is where our “boom” has occurred. Super League has raised it from 7 per club to 10 and with the admission of two additional sides to the competition, we could well be watching up to 140 players who fall under the quota criteria. How that helps the sport here, the clubs themselves, the players in pathways and the make up of the pathway’s is anybody’s guess.

I would hazard a guess that we will run with 11 academy teams in the academy league this year. We had Salford in 2025 and they won’t have an academy in 2026 and I believe York haven’t got an academy, so it won’t be a like-for-like swap there.

Will ‘weak’ opponents in Bradford, York and Toulouse see clubs blood players against those teams? Perhaps but is that enough? Not many showed Salford much mercy in 2025 and went strong against them and they were far weaker than the three newbies in 2026, so I wouldn’t expect to see many kids against these teams.

 

[Gobsmacked]

We’re experiencing a boom, though I’m not sure it’s the one people expected or are particularly fond of, especially in the immediate aftermath of getting a 3-0 slapping off the Australians in the Ashes. Theoretically, there were a maximum of 84 players allowed in Super League in 2025 that fell under the quota criteria. This is where our “boom” has occurred. Super League has raised it from 7 per club to 10 and with the admission of two additional sides to the competition, we could well be watching up to 140 players who fall under the quota criteria. How that helps the sport here, the clubs themselves, the players in pathways and the make up of the pathway’s is anybody’s guess.

I would hazard a guess that we will run with 11 academy teams in the academy league this year. We had Salford in 2025 and they won’t have an academy in 2026 and I believe York haven’t got an academy, so it won’t be a like-for-like swap there.

Will ‘weak’ opponents in Bradford, York and Toulouse see clubs blood players against those teams? Perhaps but is that enough? Not many showed Salford much mercy in 2025 and went strong against them and they were far weaker than the three newbies in 2026, so I wouldn’t expect to see many kids against these teams.

From a maximum of 84 to a maximum of 140 is still well short of the additional 90 required with the inclusion of 3 new clubs..you still need an extra 34 players found locally even if the quota are met.. and that's very unlikely to be met as the addition of Perth and PNG will outbid any SL club on those Kiwi, Australian and PNG that would be worth bringing to SL.

These things is the English game always have such a negative outlook but it doesn't matter how negative you are. The math only allows for an expansion in English and French talent..

 

[Taking The Two]

From a maximum of 84 to a maximum of 140 is still well short of the additional 90 required with the inclusion of 3 new clubs..you still need an extra 34 players found locally even if the quota are met.. and that's very unlikely to be met as the addition of Perth and PNG will outbid any SL club on those Kiwi, Australian and PNG that would be worth bringing to SL.

These things is the English game always have such a negative outlook but it doesn't matter how negative you are. The math only allows for an expansion in English and French talent..

So clubs go after NSW Cup dross, pushing pathway players further down the line, any that do make it play a sub standard level and the product is harmed. That’s before you line up an England v Australia match. Or even New Zealand. Or PNG in 5 years time.

We’ve now got 90 additional players in Super League, 30 can be quota and 60 are, mostly, Championship standard with one of the 3 promoted teams having no academy, a Bradford side whose pathway teams have won 7 of their previous 48 games and produced next to nothing over that period and a Toulouse side, whose reserve grade have won 12 of their last 90 games (5 completed seasons), since Covid, including a 0-0-20 season last time around. It’s a fallacy

It’s all well and good saying “PNG and Perth will sweep up whoever is good and it will be good for England” but the reality is different. We’ve expanded the quota numbers, increasing by 66% and now have a league littered with Joe Stimson, Waqa Blake, Tristan Powell and Xavier Va’a, blokes who aren’t cut out for Q Cup level. That’s going to have a detrimental impact on the product here, high intensity games will be fewer and farther between, for example.

We’ve also binned off an international calendar to have an extra round of Super League, unbalancing the league fixtures only two months after the clubs voted to end having an unbalanced schedule. That’s no England camps throughout the year, that’s no England mid-season international and no real interest by the game here to take that seriously, barely a month or so after over 130,000 attended in person and peak audiences of over 1 million on TV.

PNG and Perth have been a “threat” for some time and rather than trying to fill that shortfall with English talent, we’ve jus lazily allowed for 63 additional antipodeans, not looked at how we can fill that void with English talent and how we create a pathway system to aide that. Instead, we’ve got the same amount of French players we’ve always had - Toulouse have had a pathway for years and are hoping clubs magically get their acts together but don’t actually bother to give out points for academies and pathways on the IMG criteria.

The reality is that we are harming our competition by not having a massive push on player production and it’s left to Wigan, Saints, Leeds and maybe one or two others to do the work for those that don’t pull their weight. English players will be better served moving to Australia at 20-21 and being in proper pathways over there, I fear.

 

[Gobsmacked]

So clubs go after NSW Cup dross, pushing pathway players further down the line, any that do make it play a sub standard level and the product is harmed. That’s before you line up an England v Australia match. Or even New Zealand. Or PNG in 5 years time.

We’ve now got 90 additional players in Super League, 30 can be quota and 60 are, mostly, Championship standard with one of the 3 promoted teams having no academy, a Bradford side whose pathway teams have won 7 of their previous 48 games and produced next to nothing over that period and a Toulouse side, whose reserve grade have won 12 of their last 90 games (5 completed seasons), since Covid, including a 0-0-20 season last time around. It’s a fallacy

It’s all well and good saying “PNG and Perth will sweep up whoever is good and it will be good for England” but the reality is different. We’ve expanded the quota numbers, increasing by 66% and now have a league littered with Joe Stimson, Waqa Blake, Tristan Powell and Xavier Va’a, blokes who aren’t cut out for Q Cup level. That’s going to have a detrimental impact on the product here, high intensity games will be fewer and farther between, for example.

We’ve also binned off an international calendar to have an extra round of Super League, unbalancing the league fixtures only two months after the clubs voted to end having an unbalanced schedule. That’s no England camps throughout the year, that’s no England mid-season international and no real interest by the game here to take that seriously, barely a month or so after over 130,000 attended in person and peak audiences of over 1 million on TV.

PNG and Perth have been a “threat” for some time and rather than trying to fill that shortfall with English talent, we’ve jus lazily allowed for 63 additional antipodeans, not looked at how we can fill that void with English talent and how we create a pathway system to aide that. Instead, we’ve got the same amount of French players we’ve always had - Toulouse have had a pathway for years and are hoping clubs magically get their acts together but don’t actually bother to give out points for academies and pathways on the IMG criteria.

The reality is that we are harming our competition by not having a massive push on player production and it’s left to Wigan, Saints, Leeds and maybe one or two others to do the work for those that don’t pull their weight. English players will be better served moving to Australia at 20-21 and being in proper pathways over there, I fear.

You're certainly right about pathways being part of the IMG gradings.

 

[Perth Red]

Super league clubs will start looking at PNG, NSW&queensland cup.

Alas this is clearly what has happened, especially for the lower end clubs. Until they force clubs to run decent academies and have a proper reserve grade program then they'll keep going for the quick fix.

 

[Perth Red]

But on the plus side we will have an extra 20 or so French players FT in the top league next season. Along with around 10 in UK clubs. Looking forward to seeing how Dezaria develops at the Champions.

All SL clubs would do well to be scouting the eltie1 comp and French club jnrs.

 

[Taking The Two]

Catalans have 13 French eligible players in their side for 2026. They have 15 Antipodean/English players in their side. Toulouse have 16 French eligible players with 15 Antipodean/English players, though 6 of the 16 at Toulouse played fewer than 10 games in 2025 in the UK leagues. There's another 8 or so names in Super League at British clubs, so just a shade over a full squad of French players. It's not bad numbers at all and many clubs in England aren't even close to 13 players through their pathways in the past 5-10 seasons, so it really shows what kind of situation we are in.

 

[Perth Red]

Catalans have 13 French eligible players in their side for 2026. They have 15 Antipodean/English players in their side. Toulouse have 16 French eligible players with 15 Antipodean/English players, though 6 of the 16 at Toulouse played fewer than 10 games in 2025 in the UK leagues. There's another 8 or so names in Super League at British clubs, so just a shade over a full squad of French players. It's not bad numbers at all and many clubs in England aren't even close to 13 players through their pathways in the past 5-10 seasons, so it really shows what kind of situation we are in.

Big issue for France is hardly any of the French players are starters at Catalans. likely only 3 of the starting 13 for dragons will be French.

 

[Taking The Two]

Big issue for France is hardly any of the French players are starters at Catalans. likely only 3 of the starting 13 for dragons will be French.

You could say the same about English clubs in 2026. Take Cas, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that they lineup as

Taafe, Valemei, Cini, Mapapalangi, Ravalawa, Asi, Weaver, Atoni, Hood, Lawler, Greacen, Lane, Stimson.

Only Lawler, Wood and Lane as the token Englishmen.

 

[Ian Douglas]

In an ideal world I’d love to see the FFRXIII run scholarship and academy teams in the UK competition and when the players reach 19 years of age the best ones are divided up between both Catalan and Toulouse in a NFL style draft.

of course this is all dependent on finances which the French don’t have and why I desperately hope against hope that the NRL will somehow invest in French rugby league.

 

[astreizix]

In this sense note that St Helens spotted a young French talent and recruited him for this season. Luca formed in the F.C.Lézignan XIII rugby school, passed through all the age categories in this club, international U19.

His father, Alan, is a pure born wiganer, living and working in France for many years. Ironically his son signed for the Saints but that doesn't stop him from being very proud of his son.
Alan if you read me, i am very happy for you, Alexandra, Owen and Luca

 

[Ian Douglas]

In this sense note that St Helens spotted a young French talent and recruited him for this season. Luca formed in the F.C.Lézignan XIII rugby school, passed through all the age categories in this club, international U19.

His father, Alan, is a pure born wiganer, living and working in France for many years. Ironically his son signed for the Saints but that doesn't stop him from being very proud of his son.
Alan if you read me, i am very happy for you, Alexandra, Owen and Luca

Was Luca born in France and will he be representing France if Selected?

 

[Taking The Two]

Not sure on his birthplace but he has been selected for the French academy side previously.

With Welsby, Robertson, Lomax, Hastings, Sailor and Whitby ahead of him, it will take an injury crisis for him to play for Saints. I suspect he will get a game at somewhere like Swinton this year.

 

[astreizix]

Was Luca born in France and will he be representing France if Selected?

I think he is born in France, he always said he was proud to be able to represent his country France

Sorry video below in french