Castleford Tigers have set their sights on Canterbury Bulldogs fullback Blake Taaffe as another target for their ever-evolving 2026 squad, Love Rugby League can reveal.
The 26-year-old is off-contract at the Bulldogs at the end of this season, and no new deal appears to be forthcoming for the player.
That has alerted the Tigers to Taaffe, with an offer made to try and secure his signature and bring him to Super League for the 2026 campaign.
Taaffe started his career with South Sydney and made his NRL debut in the 2021 season for the Rabbitohs. He made 28 appearances for the club in total across three seasons before switching to the Bulldogs for the start of the 2024 campaign.
He made nine appearances for them last season, including their play-off defeat to Manly, playing in a variety of positions including fullback, half-back and from the bench.
This year, he has featured just four times but Taaffe has been one of the standouts in the New South Wales Cup. A goal-kicking utility, Taaffe now looks increasingly likely to be heading to Super League in 2026, sources in Australia have told Love Rugby League.
Taaffe would be the newest addition in a Castleford squad that is likely to look dramatically different by the time they kick off under the leadership of a new head coach in 2026.
They have already signed the likes of Newcastle Knights forward Brock Greacen, Hull FC prop Jack Ashworth and Wakefield’s Renouf Atoni. Liam Hood is also expected to join from Trinity, as revealed by Love Rugby League last month.
But the Tigers’ attention has now turned to strengthening and overhauling their backline. Taaffe can play either half-back or fullback, and would add a significant spine option to Castleford’s ranks for 2026.
And the club are accelerating plans to bring Taaffe to the club.
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