Leigh Leopards Sign Alec Tuitavake, Withdraw Offer for Ben Condon

Leigh Leopards have secured prop Alec Tuitavake on a two-year contract. This signing follows the club’s decision to withdraw from an earlier agreement to sign fellow Australian Ben Condon. The deal for Condon, a 24-year-old back rower, also for a two-year term, had been finalized in October for the 2025 season. However, Condon was recently involved in an accident. Leigh stated that this incident “resulted in injuries which caused the club concern,” leading to their medical staff’s assessment and the subsequent decision not to proceed with his signing. Tuitavake, aged 23, joins the team after departing St George Illawarra Dragons. He fills the position previously held by Tom Amone, who left the Super League club to join the Australian team Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. Chris Chester, Leigh’s head of rugby, commented on the acquisition: “We have been looking to get a replacement for Tom Amone for several months now, and believe we have the right person to fill those boots. Alec is young, he’s only 23, and he’s hungry. He’s been through some good systems in Australia and has many good years ahead of him.” Chester also suggested that a future signing of Condon by Leigh remains a possibility. He further stated: “It’s a blow to our preparations for next season to lose a signing of Ben’s quality. We had really high aspirations for him, and we hold that focus that it can happen in the future. Part of any signing involves due diligence and unfortunately after the unfortunate accident in which Ben was involved, we were unable to proceed. Ben is a really good guy and we wish him well.”