Catalans Dragons in talks to sign Australian forward Willie Mason
Wednesday 18 November 2015 15:25, UK
Willie Mason could be set for a return to Super League after Catalans Dragons revealed they are in talks to sign the Australian forward.
Mason was released by Hull KR just six months into a three-year contract in 2011, with the club claiming he was unable to obtain a Tongan passport that would have enabled him to come off their overseas quota.
The former Canterbury Bulldogs, Sydney Roosters, North Queensland and Newcastle prop subsequently had a brief spell in rugby union with French club Toulon before he returned to the NRL with Newcastle and, more recently, Manly.
Now 35 and a free agent, Mason is being tipped to finish his career in France with the Catalans and the club confirmed talks have taken place with the former Australia international.
Mason was coy about his future but was adamant he has no intention of retiring just yet.
"I'm 35, but my body is in good nick, I don't miss any sessions," Mason told Fairfax Media. "If I didn't get suspended I would have played every game this year.
"I was playing more minutes, doing more work and if you look at the stats, I'm more productive than my last three years. I'm thinking, 'Why retire?' Because of my age? It doesn't mean anything really."
The former New South Wales forward, who was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal as man of the match in the Bulldogs' 2004 Grand Final triumph, would join a host of high-profile recruits in Perpignan for 2016.
Glenn Stewart, Dave Taylor and Justin Horo have already been signed to bolster the pack, alongside international backs Todd Carney, Willie Tonga and Krisnan Inu.
