Fax sign QLT ahead of Rams showdown

The Samoan, more generally known simply as ‘QLT’, has been one of the outstanding backs in the Championship since moving to England to join Sheffield Eagles in 2011 and is expected to make his Fax debut in Sunday’s Championship clash at Dewsbury (3.0).

The 34 year old, who twice scored a club-record 35 tries in a season for the South Yorkshire side, has spent the last year and a half with Toronto.

But with the Wolfpack buying another number one, Gareth O’Brien, from Salford earlier this year, QLT’s limited options in Canada opened the door for Fax boss Richard Marshall.

“Quentin’s an exciting signing for us; with Will Sharp already here it means we have two of the best full backs in the competition,” said Marshall, who confirmed QLT would not be allowed to play against Toronto in next Saturday’s match-up in London.

“It’s something we’ve been working on for a while and he will give us a different dimension.

“It’s no reflection on Will, who I spoke to earlier in the week about this.

“Will can play on the wing, Quentin can also play in the halves or at centre, so we have some options and we’ll consider those before finalising the side for this weekend.

“I think our other players can learn a lot from him too; not just Will, but the young players like Kian Morgan, Conor McGrath and James Woodburn-Hall.

“I’m all about developing those young men and giving them opportunities, but they need high quality, experienced players to learn from as well.

“He’ll be a great mentor for them over the course of the season.”

With QLT on board and a clean bill of health from last weekend’s scrappy win over Swinton, Marshall has plenty of selection options against the Rams.

Castleford forward James Green, impressive in recent weeks, will play again on dual-registration while injured trio Ben Heaton, Woodburn-Hall and Ed Barber could all return to action in Saturday’s reserve fixture at Wakefield.

“We’re doing okay,” said Marshall, whose side will be looking for a fourth straight Championship win.

“It’s going to be a tough afternoon, we’ve not had an easy game there since I came to the club.

“They are battle hardened and they have a few players who know what we’re about; I don’t think there’s going to be any love lost.

“The size of the field there means you get plenty chances to attack, but also that it can be hard to find the space to turn that into scoring opportunities.

“We’re confident, but we need to be a lot more clinical with our skills and decision making than we were last week.”