Toopi has been released from the final year of his contract after undergoing a knee reconstruction.

His departure frees up a space in Rhinos' squad for next year, but chief executive Gary Hetherington said no decision on a replacement has yet been made.

"There's a whole range of things we need to consider," said Hetherington. "We can only have 20 players (in the senior squad) and we need to cover all positions.

"Next year we are going to have two hookers, which we've not had for the last couple of years. We have lived on a bit of a tightrope in that regard and we've addressed that.

"We have got quite a lot of versatility in the squad and if you look at the age of the squad, it is pretty strong all round. The departure of a few players will certainly give us some flexibility, but we won't necessarily sign a centre to replace Clinton.

"It is very much up in the air at this moment in time and a decision has not been made yet."

St Helens' Willie Talau is a potential target if Rhinos do opt to sign a specialist centre.

Hetherington said: "It is not surprising people will be speculating about quite a number of players, but it remains pure speculation."

Rhinos are "always" looking at the player market, according to Hetherington.

"That process is ongoing, irrespective of where we are in the season," he said.

"At the end of the season, (coach) Brian McClennan, the coaching staff and myself will do a full analysis of where we are with the salary cap and what our needs and requirements are – and also which players may be available.

"Part and parcel of that is the progress of other players within the squad. This year has seen the emergence of Ben Jones-Bishop, Danny Allan, Kallum Watkins, Luke Burgess and Simon Worrall.

"They have all made tremendous progress and acquitted themselves extremely well and they are all contenders for the top-20 squad.

"Our squad at the end of this season will be significantly stronger than it was at the start, because all these players have come into the first team and showed they are Super League-standard players."

Second-row Carl Ablett has been filling in at centre for Rhinos since Toopi's season-ending injury and the club are hopeful Ashley Gibson will be fully-fit next year, after spending most of the last 18 months on the sidelines due to knee and hamstring problems.

Meanwhile, Hetherington today confirmed New Zealand Test back-rower Greg Eastwood – who is to join Rhinos next season on a three-year deal – was always first-choice to replace Wests Tigers-bound Gareth Ellis.

Rhinos were strongly linked with another Kiwi forward, Penrith's Frank Pritchard, but Hetherington said: "We are delighted to have signed Greg and he's the only player we made an offer for.

"He was always number one on Brian's wish-list."

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