Leeds Rhinos coach Brad Arthur welcomes Morgan Gannon return, hints door open for other NRL expats

The second-rower made 68 Super League appearances for Rhinos from 2021 to last year before moving to the southern hemisphere competition with New Zealand Warriors. Since then, Rhinos’ Harry Newman, James McDonnell and Mikolaj Oledzki have all signed contracts with new NRL club Perth Bears, beginning next season.

Gannon penned a 36-month deal for the Auckland-based outfit, but a personal matter prompted him to ask for a release at the end of this season. He has signed a three-year contract with Rhinos from 2027 and Arthur said: “We are fortunate the club he wants to play for is Leeds, his home club.”

The coach stressed: “We are disappointed around his family situation, but excited we get the opportunity to coach him again. I really enjoyed coaching him for the last year and a half before he left and it will be good to see what he can add to our squad and what he has learned. It will be good to get him back.”

Gannon turned down a lucrative offer from Leeds in order to play in the NRL, but made it clear then he regarded Rhinos as his English club. Arthur stressed: “He didn’t leave on bad terms, he didn’t get pushed out.

“He left on a positive note of doing the right thing by the club and the club looking after him the whole way through when he had some head knocks. We were happy to promote him to the NRL, that’s what everyone has got to realise.

“These guys who are going to the NRL, we are promoting these guys to a better pathway and a better career for themselves and a better lifestyle for themselves if that’s how they are choosing to do it. There’s no malice in it.

“We’ve just got to be comfortable that we’ve got a good club, the club is bigger than any coaches or players and if they do decide to come back to the UK we’ve just got to bank on their first priority and preference being to come back to their local club.”