St Helens confident of retaining Regan Grace despite rugby union offers
Photo: Alex Whitehead/SWpix
St Helens coach Kristian Woolf says he is confident of the club tying down Regan Grace to a new deal despite rugby union showing heavy interest.
The 25-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season. He is attracting interest from clubs in the NRL as well as in rugby union.
Wales international Grace has scored 67 tries in 133 Super League games since making his first team debut for Saints in 2016. He has won three Super League Grand Finals and a Challenge Cup.
Woolf says it is vital for the club to retain homegrown product Grace. The champions are doing everything they can to tie him down to a new deal.
He told Love Rugby League: “Make no bones about it, we want to keep Regan at this club. We are working really hard to make sure that’s the case. We’ve got some confidence that we can do that.
“With a player like him, Matty Lees, Jack Welsby and Sione Mata’utia – they are quality players that every team would like to have in their team. They are quality players that other codes would like to have and teams in Australia would like to have.
“When they are off-contract, you’ve got to work really hard. You’ve got to make sure that – within a salary cap – it is really attractive and come up with something that will help them in their careers and in their progression. That is what we are aiming to do with Regan.
“We are very keen to keep him around. We are confident we can come up with something that is really attractive, that doesn’t mean that other clubs aren’t going to work just as hard and come up with something attractive as well.”
Regan Grace future to be resolved within “next week or two”
The speedster will return from a lengthy injury lay-off when Saints travel to Toulouse on Saturday.
Woolf added: “A guy like Regan is going to have choice and that’s what he has got at the moment. We are confident that will be resolved within the next week or two.
“Regan is extremely committed here. He loves the club, he came through the club and he is a really popular member of the team. He’s highly thought of by the rest of the team and the coaching staff.
“He will give us absolutely everything he’s got this weekend and regardless whether he is with us or next year or not, he will do the same for the rest of the year.”
Port Talbot-born Grace could play in his second Rugby League World Cup this autumn.
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