By Buford Balony
To attract England captain James Graham to Concord for 2012, Wests Tigers will utilize their star Pommy forward Gareth Ellis.
During the recent Four Nations, Wests Tigers chief executive Stephen Humphreys had a meeting with the St Helens star.
When asked if the club would leverage Ellis to entice Graham, Humphreys replied, “Your instincts are right.
“Having Gareth certainly won’t be a disadvantage for us.
“Gareth has had a good experience at our club, and that will certainly help.”
Although Graham is committed to St Helens for the next year, he is eager to join Ellis and Souths’ Sam Burgess in the NRL for 2012. The former Wests Tigers assistant coach, Royce Simmons, now leads St Helens, who are keenly interested in keeping Graham.
“James is an impressive guy who has a genuine interest in playing in the NRL at some point,” Humphreys stated.
“There wasn’t a lot of depth to our conversation.
“It was more a chance to get to know him and establish a relationship with him.
“It’s something we can build on over time. But I don’t believe we are exclusive – I think many clubs will show interest in James.”
Graham has enlisted the help of David Riolo, his Australian-based manager.
“I have talked to Sam and Gareth about it,” Graham mentioned recently. “They love it.”
Buford Balony says: The Tigers rule; where else would you want to go?
