Castleford Tigers are doing ‘everything in their power’ to retain Tex Hoy and have tabled a deal to keep the fullback long-term, Love Rugby League can reveal.
Hoy has made an impressive impact at Castleford since arriving on an initial short-term deal until the end of the season. He starred during their victory over former club Hull FC last weekend and there is increasing clamour for the Tigers to tie him down permanently beyond this year.
And Castleford director of rugby Danny Wilson, speaking exclusively to Love Rugby League, confirmed that they are doing all they can to ensure Hoy remains with the club in 2025.
“At the beginning of this year, the plan was to retain our talented young kids and add some real quality to the squad,” Wilson said.
“We accelerated that by bringing people in during the season. Jack Broadbent going to Hull KR afforded us the chance to bring in Louis Senior and Corey Hall but with contributing a little bit more money on top of that, we were able to bring Tex in.
“He’s seriously shown his quality – and it’s funny how players react when they enjoy what they’re doing. The try he scored on Friday shows exactly what he’s capable of.
“We want to keep him, of course. I know the fans want to keep him and we’re doing everything in our power to table the right offer. That’s ongoing and we’re working on that.”
Wilson confirmed Castleford are taking an aggressive approach to recruitment having tied down many of their best young players – with Hoy firmly part of their plans.
“There’s still some retention to do but we’ve always been trying to add quality,” Wilson said. “We went hard for George King and just lot out. Jack Brown is another we just lost out on. We’re always in the market overseas and people like Kayal Iro, we were asking questions and speaking to their management teams, but once they start playing in the NRL it’s hard to get them over to Super League.
A feature-length interview with Wilson, covering all aspects of recruitment and retention plus the club’s long-term vision – and with news of another key deal – will be released on Wednesday.
