By Nick Wright
As the British and Irish Lions begin their first Test preparations in Brisbane, Dolphins star Herbie Farnworth insists he has no temptation to complete a code jump to rugby union, as he reaffirmed his commitment to his club’s quest for a maiden NRL premiership.
The 25-year-old was floated as a potential sensation of the 15-man game last year by former England and Great Britain international Martin Offiah – whose career included stints in union with the Bedford Blues and London Wasps.
Farnworth is signed with the Dolphins until the end of 2026, the year before the Rugby World Cup takes place in Australia. A defection from the Englishman would set up an enthralling battle with NRL wunderkind-turned-Wallabies phenom Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii.
Herbie Farnworth of the Dolphins denies there is any interest from him to jump codes to rugby union.Credit: Getty Images
But ahead of Thursday night’s clash with the Cowboys, before the Lions face the Wallabies on Saturday at Suncorp Stadium, Farnworth denied there had ever been any interest to make the change, as he pledged his allegiance to his current outfit.
“Nothing really, like I’ve said before I’m still very happy at the Dolphins. I’ve still got this year and next year left, so I’ve got a long, long time here,” Farnworth said, having played union in his childhood, and reportedly had attracted interest from England clubs.
“I think we’re going in a really positive way. We’ve got some great young players, so nothing has changed in that aspect.
“I try and keep in touch with them [the Lions] via socials, and obviously, I wish them the best of luck. I might even go to the game this weekend.
“But any Pommies in Brissie come down to the Dolphins game and see a fellow Pommy like myself, and hopefully help us get the two points.”
Farnworth laughed when asked if former Redcliffe Dolphins Queensland Cup coach and England/Lions rugby union centre Ben Te’o had got in his ear at any stage about his own union exploits, joking “he always tells me war stories, does Benny Te’o, but nothing I’ve taken on board really”.
His contract situation will become a huge point of interest once he becomes free to negotiate with rivals from November 1, but Dolphins coach Kristian Woolf declared re-signing him was “a priority of ours”.
“He’s played his best footy, and the great thing about Herbie is he’s got improvement in him. He comes up with a big play every week,” Woolf said.
“I love what Herbie brings, I love his personality, I love his presence around the group. He’s a guy we certainly want to be a Dolphin going forward, and a guy we want to build the team around.”
When asked about his team’s push for a maiden finals berth, the two-time Dally M centre of the year’s demeanour quickly became serious, as he declared “every game now coming up we pretty much have to win”.
Injuries to Kulikefu Finefeuiaki (broken thumb) and Mark Nicholls (concussion) have diminished the Dolphins’ stocks even.
They join Thomas Flegler, Tom Gilbert, Daniel Saifiti, Felise Kaufusi, Kodi Nikorima, Max Plath, Sebastian Su’a and Jack Bostock in the casualty ward.
While Farnworth lamented the inability for 2026 recruit and his old Brisbane Broncos teammate Selwyn Cobbo to arrive at Kayo Stadium before the June 30 transfer deadline to help offset the injury toll, he was adamant the group did not believe they had suffered too many setbacks to handle.
“There’s not any feeling of that, we’ve got a lot of trust in the boys coming in,” he said.
“That’s part of footy, players go down, and it’s just next man up. I think we’ve lost all of our leadership group, so it’s a good chance for those younger boys to step up.”