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JAMES Tedesco has sensationally revealed he is being courted by the Bulldogs and Roosters, and the reasons why he could leave Concord to join an NRL rival.
Speaking to local radio station C91.3FM early on Thursday morning, Tedesco was open and honest when questioned about his contract situation and the firestorm engulfing his Wests Tigers.
Tedesco’s future is a hot topic in rugby league at the moment, as he’s yet to commit to a club beyond 2017.
He’s not alone, with teammates and close friends Aaron Woods, Mitchell Moses, and Luke Brooks also yet to confirm their futures — although Brooks is believed to have agreed to an extension with the Tigers.
The quartet have been quiet on their contract situations over the past two months but Tedesco dropped a bombshell when asked about the Bulldogs and Roosters.
“Those two teams are interested,” the talented fullback said.
“(My manager) Isaac (Moses) told me those two are interested, I haven’t really had any formal discussions with them.
“They definitely are interested, and those two teams are pretty strong clubs that we’ll have to consider.
“Obviously the priority is to stay at Tigers but our performances lately haven’t been up to scratch, from my perspective and from the team’s perspective.”
Tedesco is one of the hottest young players in the game and undoubtedly one of the best fullbacks running around.
The Tigers confirmed on Wednesday night they have made Tedesco and Woods retention priorities, but they face stiff competition from rival clubs.
In a shock admission, Tedesco revealed he is fed up with the off-field dramas the Tigers seem to find themselves in on a regular basis.
The club’s latest saga involved sacking coach Jason Taylor three rounds in to the season, who has now been replaced by Ivan Cleary.
“I think clubs like the Bulldogs and Roosters, you know they’re always going to be strong and they’ve always been run from the top very powerfully,” Tedesco said.
“The Tigers have always been down the bottom, we’ve always had off-field dramas and that stuff gets quite annoying over the years when you have to put up with it.
“That stability at other clubs is tempting, I guess, when you think about it.
“Ivan’s come in and said it will take a bit of time, and there is hope there that we can get back on track and that’s the hope we need.”
Tedesco says if new coach Cleary can prove he has what it takes to turn the club around on and off the field, he will be more inclined to stay in the famous black and orange strip.
“It’s not money, the money is not an issue,” he said.
“Just our performances need to improve ... as I said Ivan might come in and prove that and I might see that long-term we will be able to win premierships.
“Also recruiting as well, I think we need to make some good signings in the next few years to be a strong club.
“Our squad at the moment is quite strong, we just haven’t been consistent for many years.
“I’m hoping Ivan can come in and we can generate some consistency, but it takes a bit of time.”
Cleary has spoken privately to Tedesco already in the past few days in an effort to entice the star fullback to remain at Concord.
“He’s talked to me a bit and said he can turn me into the best fullback in the game,” Tedesco said.
“He played fullback as well, and I know myself I’ve got to work on some things and improve in a lot of areas and he’s confident that he can help me with that.
“The team too with that stability — as you know we’ve had a lot of off-field stuff — and having Ivan there, he’s come in and simplified it a bit for us.
“I think we’ll take that on board and hopefully get a win this weekend. We need something.”
http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...s/news-story/ace137a2803718118c509d0d52233cee
Speaking to local radio station C91.3FM early on Thursday morning, Tedesco was open and honest when questioned about his contract situation and the firestorm engulfing his Wests Tigers.
Tedesco’s future is a hot topic in rugby league at the moment, as he’s yet to commit to a club beyond 2017.
He’s not alone, with teammates and close friends Aaron Woods, Mitchell Moses, and Luke Brooks also yet to confirm their futures — although Brooks is believed to have agreed to an extension with the Tigers.
The quartet have been quiet on their contract situations over the past two months but Tedesco dropped a bombshell when asked about the Bulldogs and Roosters.
“Those two teams are interested,” the talented fullback said.
“(My manager) Isaac (Moses) told me those two are interested, I haven’t really had any formal discussions with them.
“They definitely are interested, and those two teams are pretty strong clubs that we’ll have to consider.
“Obviously the priority is to stay at Tigers but our performances lately haven’t been up to scratch, from my perspective and from the team’s perspective.”
Tedesco is one of the hottest young players in the game and undoubtedly one of the best fullbacks running around.
The Tigers confirmed on Wednesday night they have made Tedesco and Woods retention priorities, but they face stiff competition from rival clubs.
In a shock admission, Tedesco revealed he is fed up with the off-field dramas the Tigers seem to find themselves in on a regular basis.
The club’s latest saga involved sacking coach Jason Taylor three rounds in to the season, who has now been replaced by Ivan Cleary.
“I think clubs like the Bulldogs and Roosters, you know they’re always going to be strong and they’ve always been run from the top very powerfully,” Tedesco said.
“The Tigers have always been down the bottom, we’ve always had off-field dramas and that stuff gets quite annoying over the years when you have to put up with it.
“That stability at other clubs is tempting, I guess, when you think about it.
“Ivan’s come in and said it will take a bit of time, and there is hope there that we can get back on track and that’s the hope we need.”
Tedesco says if new coach Cleary can prove he has what it takes to turn the club around on and off the field, he will be more inclined to stay in the famous black and orange strip.
“It’s not money, the money is not an issue,” he said.
“Just our performances need to improve ... as I said Ivan might come in and prove that and I might see that long-term we will be able to win premierships.
“Also recruiting as well, I think we need to make some good signings in the next few years to be a strong club.
“Our squad at the moment is quite strong, we just haven’t been consistent for many years.
“I’m hoping Ivan can come in and we can generate some consistency, but it takes a bit of time.”
Cleary has spoken privately to Tedesco already in the past few days in an effort to entice the star fullback to remain at Concord.
“He’s talked to me a bit and said he can turn me into the best fullback in the game,” Tedesco said.
“He played fullback as well, and I know myself I’ve got to work on some things and improve in a lot of areas and he’s confident that he can help me with that.
“The team too with that stability — as you know we’ve had a lot of off-field stuff — and having Ivan there, he’s come in and simplified it a bit for us.
“I think we’ll take that on board and hopefully get a win this weekend. We need something.”
http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...s/news-story/ace137a2803718118c509d0d52233cee
