"Very attractive": Club linked to Radley amid rumoured Roosters fallout

The London Broncos and St Helens have both expressed interest in signing Victor Radley, should the Sydney Roosters opt to release him.

Radley’s management has been urged by the Roosters to gauge rival interest in their star lock after he was implicated in text messages referenced in an investigation surrounding former Rooster Brandon Smith.

Roosters supremo Nick Politis has been vocal in his zero-tolerance policy surrounding drugs at the club, previously expressing that “if somebody’s caught doing cocaine or leaning over snorting something, we’re going to get rid of them.”

While the Roosters do not want to move Radley on and have not decided on a course of action, the club are reportedly preparing for if they are to exit their contract with Radley.

Discussions around Radley’s potential departure have prompted interest from clubs, including St Helens and the London Broncos in the Super League.

NRL legend Darren Lockyer, who has become a major stakeholder in the London Broncos, confirmed Radley would be a player of interest as he attempts to rebuild the Super League club by signing a number of NRL players.

"We are in a position where we want to grab half a dozen guys with NRL experience and add them to the current squad," Lockyer told the Daily Telegraph.

"We have only two or three at the moment, so we are monitoring a few situations."

"If Victor becomes available, we would need to have an internal discussion about it."

St Helens coach Paul Wellens also expressed his club would have interest in Radley should he be permitted to negotiate with rivals.

"There's no doubting he's a quality player," Wellens said. "There's a fair bit going on there with his personal situation which I'm not privvy to with any of the information surrounding that and I wouldn't want to comment on that.

"But what I would say is that if a player of his quality wanted to come to Super League, then certainly, we'd like to be in the conversation there.

"But it would have to be under the right circumstances. There's a lot going on and I have to stress under the right circumstances, he's very attractive."

St Helens are losing lock Morgan Knowles to The Dolphins next season and Radley could loom as a ready-made replacement.

Radley has represented England in last season’s World Cup and is a chance to line up for them again in the Ashes tour against Australia at the end of the season.

Radley has made 161 appearances for the Roosters since debuting with the club in 2017.