Luke eyes new deal at Warriors
Off-contract Warriors hooker Issac Luke says he is determined to extend his career at the Auckland NRL club.
After struggling in his first two seasons at Mt Smart, Luke has found career-best form in 2018 to help take the Warriors to the brink of their first finals appearance since 2011.
‘‘I have spoken to ‘Mooks’ [Stephen Kearney] about it. I want to stay,’’ Luke told
‘‘Obviously it is about what is best for the club and they have a lot of depth in my area at the moment.
‘‘At the moment I am just trying to help those boys grow. I have to let my footy do the talking. I want a contract.’’
The Warriors have invested heavily in their squad over the last 18 months and fitting Luke into next year’s salary cap appears to be the biggest hurdle to keeping the 31-year-old at the club.
However, following last week’s stellar display against the Broncos, Kearney said they had not given up on re-signing him.
‘‘That’s something we’re working through with him at the moment,’’ the coach said. ‘‘We’ll see how it all pans out.’’
Retaining Luke would be a significant boost. When the Kiwis veteran has his running game going around the ruck the Warriors are a far more dangerous side, as shown on countless occasions this season.
The Warriors do have depth at hooker through Karl Lawton, Sam Cook and Nathaniel Roache. Lawton and Cook are still learning their trade, with just 20 NRL appearances between them.
Roache has not played a game all season due to a back problem, continuing a horror injury run for the talented 22-year-old.