Rumour Mill: Super League forward ‘homesick’ and keen for NRL return

Reports in Australia are suggesting that Catalans Dragons forward Sio Siua Taukeiaho is homesick and keen to push for an NRL return – which could yet influence Luke Keary’s move to Super League.

Taukeiaho has yet to feature in a single game for the Dragons this year due to injury, and was subject to a bizarre chain of events at the end of last season which looked set to end in him returning to the NRL just one year into his Catalans deal.

Catalans announced in August that he would be granted a release at the end of the 2023 campaign but after featuring for the club in the Super League Grand Final, the reported NRL return never materialised. He then returned to the Dragons to honour the second season of his two-year deal.

But now, the Wide World of Sports are reporting that Taukeiaho is homesick and keen to push for an exit from the Dragons. However, they are reportedly against releasing him unless they secure a replacement, though NRL clubs are apparently expressing an interest in the player.

Taukeiaho is closing in on a return to action after a foot problem which required surgery in the off-season. He was supposedly heading to Canterbury Bulldogs for the 2024 season, but that deal fell through, leading to him returning to the south of France.

The Roosters, who are set to lose Keary at the end of the season as he mulls over a deal from Catalans that would see him reverse his upcoming retirement, are thought to be one of the clubs who are interested in Taukeiaho’s services for 2025, marking a reunion with the club he served for years.

There is an option for a third year in Taukeiaho’s contract – though it looks unlikely to be activated at this stage. It is now seemingly a question of whether the prop can successfully push for a release early from his Catalans deal if the reports of homesickness are accurate.

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