Matty Nicholson opens door to future Warrington return

Naturally, he would dearly love to have the same kind of impact and longevity in the NRL as the man he is effectively going to replace at Canberra Raiders from next year – the England international back-rower Elliot Whitehead.

The Bradford-born star has played nearly 200 times for the Green Machine since heading Down Under in 2016 and as Nicholson prepares to make that journey, he is doing so at a much earlier stage in his career.

Should the time come for him to return to England, however, he has affirmed he wants it to be with Warrington Wolves.

So while the countdown clock on the 20-year-old’s time at The Halliwell Jones Stadium is now officially ticking down, the end of 2024 may not necessarily be the end of Nicholson in primrose and blue.

“100 per cent. This club has given me so much,” he said when asked if Wire would be his first choice should he return to Super League.

(Image: SWPix.com)

“If I ever do come back, this will be my club.”

That may not initially sooth the disappointment among Warrington fans that Nicholson has decided to make the move across the world at the age of just 20.

Indeed, England head coach Shaun Wane was among those who said he would have liked to have seen the dynamic edge forward stay at the club for a little longer having made an impressive impact since joining from Wigan Warriors midway through 2022.

And he admits it is a decision he has agonised over.

“In my mind, it’s about not having any regrets. I don’t want to look back and have any,” he said.

“Rugby league’s a weird sport with injuries and other things – you never know what’s going to happen so for me, I felt like it was a chance I had to take.

“For now, I’m so focused on the rest of this year with Warrington and hopefully I can leave with some silverware.

“It was still a really tough call as I love it here.

“I can’t thank the club enough for what they’ve done for me since I signed here – they gave me the chance to make my way in the game and I’ll be forever grateful for that.

“It was a really tough decision, but I just couldn’t turn it down. I’m really thankful for how they’ve handled the whole situation.

“I’ve spoke to a few of the lads about Canberra. George (Williams) loved his time there and everyone has good things to say about the place.

“Morgan Smithies is one of my good mates and he’s there now and he loves it.

“They’ve got a great reputation of bringing on English lads so it’s something I’m really looking forward to.”

Nicholson made a try-scoring Wire debut at Magic Weekend 2022 having signed from Wigan Warriors (Image: SWPix.com)

With his future now sorted, Nicholson can put all of his energy into making sure his time at The Wire ends on a high.

They are in a good position to do just that, with Thursday’s win over Leeds Rhinos making it three wins in a row as they continue to rebuild momentum following their post-Challenge Cup Final stumble.

Now, they approach a key run of games against fellow high-fliers, with trips to St Helens and Wigan Warriors in the next two weeks.

“It’s an exciting little block coming up playing against the top teams,” he said.

“It’s a challenge we’re looking forward to and we’re going to meet it head-on.

“Wembley takes a lot out of you physically and mentally. We’ve been doing it in blocks and in this one, we wanted four out of four but we couldn’t quite get that.

“The next best was three from three and we’ve got that now.

“Leeds are a tough team – they stick in and they can hurt you from anywhere on the pitch.

“We started well but we knew the momentum would change at some point and it did at times in the first half and then moreso in the second.

“We’re just glad we got the two points – that was the main focus.

“We’re happy with where we’re at – hopefully we’re back on track now and we can keep this momentum going.”