Cutters coach happy for Cowboys to pluck playmaker from ISC

Ata Hingano has started pre-season with the Cowboys with Mick Crawley’s blessing, as the NRL pathway continues to pay off

Tonga's Ata Hingano makes a break during the Rugby League World Cup men's semi-final match between Tonga and England. PHOTO: MICHAEL BRADLEY

CUTTERS coach Michael Crawley has welcomed the prospect of having to replace incumbent halfback Ata Hingano if it means the Tongan international gets another crack at the NRL.

The 23-year-old playmaker was invited to train with the North Queensland Cowboys in pre-season, which officially began on Monday.

Crawley, who was at the Canberra Raiders in 2018 when Hingano made his NRL debut, said he had been pushing the Tongan’s name to a number of clubs since he arrived in Mackay early this year.

“My thoughts are he should be playing at that level anyway,” Crawley said of the 32-game NRL starter.

“If the Cowboys are interested in taking him on, he would still be playing with us when he wasn’t playing NRL. And if he is (playing NRL) then maybe someone else is made available to come back to us, through our allocation.

“For me it’s a win-win.”

Hingano’s invitation comes after Cutters teammate Elijah Anderson jumped ship from the Cowboys to ink a deal with Canberra, having caught the eye of Raiders recruitment guru Peter Mulholland last year.

“For us it’s what we’re about. We’re a developing club and any players that can go on from here, that’s really good for the Mackay Cutters,” the coach said.

Crawley said the opportunities afforded to the likes of Hingano and Anderson, as members of the Cutters’ Intrust Super Cup squad, were important markers for success.

“I want the boys to know there’s a pathway there. That’s the important part for us, as a club,” he said.

Subscriber benefits:

Your dose of Harry Bruce cartoons

Five ways to get more from your digital subscription

Originally published as