A club has confirmed their interest in signing Parramatta Eels Top 30 squad member Zac Cini for next season and beyond.
Contracted with the Eels until the end of this season, Cini's future remains uncertain and he is unlikely to be offered a new contract with the team, having not registered a single first-grade match for the club.
Able to play anywhere in the backs at fullback, wing or centre, Cini has made 18 NSW Cup appearances this season, scoring ten tries, managing seven try assists and seven line-breaks and averaging 155 running metres per match.
However, despite the Eels' depleted outside back stocks, he has been overlooked in favour of Lorenzo Mulitalo and Jake Tago.
Off-contract at the end of 2024, Cini has caught the attention of overseas club Castleford Tigers for 2025 and beyond.
โHe is someone we have spoken to, among a number of others. We are being really picky about the people we identify and speak to," Castleford boss Craig Lingard told media on Zan Cini.
โThey've got to be the right sort of people, the right age bracket, what they want to achieveโฆthey have to tick certain boxes. He does that.
โIf we are wanting to bring in an NRL player who has played 150 games in certain positions โ like half-backs, full-backs and centres โ they are people who command a lot of money.
โWe can't necessarily go out and get somebody who has played for Queensland or New South Wales or Australia.
โWe have got to make sure players we are bringing in, if they haven't played 50-60 NRL games, have the potential to do that โ someone who might want to be here for two or three seasons, then go back to the NRL and be a starting player over there.
"If they do a good job for us while they are over here, that's brilliant.โ
At the moment, the Castleford Tigers' international quota players include former NRL duo Jacob Miller and Tex Hoy.
Before joining the Eels, the 24-year-old spent one season with the Wests Tigers in 2021, making four NRL appearances in the process.
Released later that year, the Australian Schoolboys representative spent the past couple of seasons with the Parramatta Eels NSW Cup side before being upgraded to the Top 30 roster.
