Tom Starling is reportedly going to St Helens of the Super League immediately on a three-year deal (per The Daily Telegraph) and I am genuinely baffled.
Not that he’s leaving the Canberra Raiders. Evidently his pathway to a regular first grade position was being hamstrung by the emergence of a generational talent in Owen Pattie. Even his position as a useful utility off the bench was seemingly at risk with Malachi Smith seeming to eat his lunch at the end of the season.
With his deal up at the end of next year I can understand Starling not wanting to have to play 15-30 minutes a game and jeopardise his earning potential. Shaun Packer, Mitch Brophy, Luke Cannon. There’s simply not a place for him at Canberra beyond next season.
But that does not explain why he would go to the Super League. Starling is a first-grade quality rake in the NRL. Sure, he has his limitations. His service isn’t great, and his creativity is limited to ‘doing stuff for Huddo’. But with a pack going forward his running ability is as good as any rake in the league, and his defence is arguably the best of the lot.
He’s only 28. While the last few years would have taken a physical toll, and his size, and reliance on pace make him susceptible to age and battle-based degradation, his late start means he should have plenty of good footy in him.
There had to have been demand for him in the NRL. Manly were reportedly interested, though apparently couldn’t fit him under the cap. Souths have sniffed around before but haven’t been heard of again. But if there was demand, it hasn’t been of the nature that Starling wanted, and so off to purgatory England he goes. Maybe it’s cash, maybe it’s the role, but the Super League is what satisfies his needs.
My assumption is that his deal includes some sort of ‘I’m going home’ clause for when a team wants a starting rake, or includes substantial front-loading. Starling might be simply taking the most minutes and the most money and biding his time, rather than risk spending time in Cup. Maybe he sees that as the best way to keep his powder clean in order to come back to the league. It worked for Toby Sexton and the Bears. Maybe the long game is joining Hudson again, this time in Port Moresby.
And that’s the major takeaway for me. It’s one less thing keeping Hudson in town. Brace yourselves Canberra fans. I’m not feeling good about that one.
We’ve had some good times with Starling. He was the perfect nine to take advantage of Vlandoball and showed in his 2020 and 2021 years. His career year in 2025 was a propellant in that season, and it made his quieter 2026 season, and now this departure, even more confusing.
Canberra are going to miss Tom. His defence, his leadership, his pace around the ruck. These are all things that were a big part of their best moments in recent years. Canberra will miss a player willing to do whatever is needed. Their dirty work will have to come from elsewhere.
But this is another phase of the Raiders, and Starling simply doesn’t fit. There’s too much talent at nine to clog up the system, and while the club had been keen to keep him, one suspects they’d been clear about the role and cash that would be available. The ‘why’ is clear. It’s the ‘where’ that remains confusing.
Sign up to the email below to get our thoughts in your inbox to get ready for 2027. Don’t hesitate to send us feedback (dan@sportress.org) or comment below if you think we are stupid. Or if we’re not.
Leave a comment