{"id":354720,"date":"2023-12-20T20:55:24","date_gmt":"2023-12-20T21:55:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=354720"},"modified":"2023-12-20T23:02:11","modified_gmt":"2023-12-20T23:02:11","slug":"english-star-snubs-dragons-in-latest-recruitment-blow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=354720","title":{"rendered":"English star snubs Dragons in latest recruitment blow"},"content":{"rendered":"

S\ufeffhane Flanagan's botched recruitment drive at St George Illawarra<\/a> has taken another hit, with highly-touted English young gun Jack Welsby<\/a> signing a long-term contract extension with St Helens.<\/p>\n

The 22-year-old is widely-regarded as one of the best talents in the Super League, with his electric speed and ability to cover multiple positions helping his side to three titles since making his debut in 2018.<\/p>\n

Welsby was also an integral part of St Helens' shocking victory over the Panthers<\/a> in the 2023 World Club Challenge, scoring the opening try against the NRL juggernauts at BlueBet Stadium and announcing himself to the wider rugby league world.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: \ufeff<\/strong>Aussie racing icon unloads on F1 'prima donnas'<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Tubby's fear for Test cricket over 'ongoing threat'<\/strong><\/a>\ufeff<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Socceroos hero calls it quits after spirited comeback<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Multiple reports linked the Dragons to \ufeffWelsby's signature this past week, but his current club looked to swiftly shut down the approach, locking in the fullback until 2027.<\/p>\n

\"Jack<\/p>\n

In a statement released \ufeffon Thursday morning (AEDT), the versatile Wigan-born product expressed his desire to continue the Saints dominance in the UK competition.<\/p>\n

"I am over the moon glad it's done with now," Welsby said.<\/p>\n

"It was a decision I had to make and I'm glad that I've made the decision that I have, and I'm going to be around all my best mates and a really good club.<\/p>\n

"The NRL's a massive competition and everyone sees it as that, but I believe that Super League can be that and we've just got to work towards it.<\/p>\n

"Sometimes the speculation that comes with the NRL and stuff is not just as simple as going to sign at a different club, it's a lot of things … but for me, it was always going to be St Helens.<\/p>\n

\"SYDNEY,<\/p>\n

"Everyone at St Helens expects to win trophies, whether it's the fans, the players, the coaches, or the backroom staff. Everyone's expecting for you to go out and win at a weekend and then win on the big night at Old Trafford.<\/p>\n

"That sort of expectation, it's hard sometimes, but it's what I want, I want that pressure and that's where I feel like I play my best rugby.<\/p>\n

"I want to win things again. I think last year was a massive disappointment and the way it ended … [it] was a horrible feeling and I don't want to feel it again."<\/p>\n

Welsby has played just over 100 matches in the red and white jumper, crossing for an eye-catching 57 tries, while also representing England on six occasions.<\/p>\n

After missing out on both Addin Fonua-Blake<\/a> and Tom Dearden<\/a> in recent days, the latest setback for Flanagan at his new club leaves them with a decreasing list of potential targets for 2025 and beyond in both the playmaking and front-row stocks. \ufeff<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

S\ufeffhane Flanagan's botched recruitment drive at St George Illawarra has taken another hit, with highly-touted English young gun Jack Welsby signing a long-term contract extension […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":354722,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354720"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=354720"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354720\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":354724,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354720\/revisions\/354724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/354722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=354720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=354720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=354720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}