Wighton set to make shock rep footy call in another headache for Freddy’s Blues

Wighton set to make shock rep footy call in another headache for Freddy’s Blues

World Cup winner Jack Wighton is reportedly considering walking away from representative football ahead of the State of Origin opener next month.

Wighton has played 10 games for New South Wales since debuting in 2019 but he was a controversial omission in game three last year.

The 30-year-old missed game two with Covid and was then left out of the decider, which the Blues lost.

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Round 7

*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

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*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

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*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

VIEW ALL SCORES

*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

VIEW ALL SCORES

*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

VIEW ALL SCORES

*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

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*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

VIEW ALL SCORES

*Odds are current as of 15th April 2023, 5:36pm AEST

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Wighton was still picked in Mal Meninga’s Kangaroos squad and started in the centres the World Cup final.

Origin players earned $30,000 per game before Covid and the figure is expected to return to around that mark this year.

Blues coach Brad Fittler is aware Wighton is considering hanging up the representative boots.

The utility was no certainty to get picked this year, with Latrell Mitchell and Tom Trbojevic to start in the centres, but Wighton is in the frame to compete for a bench spot for the series opener on May 31.

Jack Wighton playing for the Blues last year. GettySource: Getty Images

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The Raiders playmaker stunned his club last month by announcing he was turning down his player option for next year and heading to the open market.

Canberra responded with a four-year deal worth $4.4 million but that’s still sitting on the table with a reported 10 clubs interested in his services.

Wighton has been heavily linked with the Dolphins and coach Wayne Bennett has declared he’d be willing to pay more than $1 million for the No. 6.

“Most people you talk to in the game will tell you he’s leaving Canberra at the end of the year,” veteran journalist Brent Read said on Triple M.

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