York Knights Land NRL Veteran Cameron McInnes on Three-Year Super League Deal
York Knights have signed Australia forward Cameron McInnes on a three-year deal, with the 32-year-old set to join the Super League club in 2027.
McInnes arrives after five seasons with Cronulla Sharks in the NRL (Australia's top rugby league competition), where he established himself as one of the competition's most durable and reliable forwards. He can play either at hooker — the number nine role, acting as the link between forwards and backs at the play-the-ball — or at loose forward, the mobile back-row position central to a team's defensive line. He made his NRL debut in 2014 and has close to 250 top-grade games to his name.
Before Cronulla, McInnes turned out for St George-Illawarra Dragons and South Sydney Rabbitohs, building a career marked less by fireworks than by relentless work rate. In 2024, he earned selection for New South Wales in the State of Origin series — the annual three-match rivalry between New South Wales and Queensland that ranks among the fierhest representative contests in either rugby code.
What prompted the move? McInnes himself pointed to a long-held ambition to test himself in the Super League, and to the specific appeal of joining a club still finding its feet at the top level.
"It had long been an ambition of mine to play in the Super League and the opportunity to do it in York with a team just starting its journey was hugely motivating," McInnes said, as reported by BBC Sport.
For York, the signing represents a significant statement. The club's own website announced the deal under the headline "Cameron McInnes is officially a Knight!" (York RLFC), and the arrangement was described as a "bumper deal" by Love Rugby League as far back as May.
Head coach Mark Applegarth was reportedly "100 per cent" keen on bringing McInnes to York, according to All Out Rugby League, and the club has now got its man.
The timing is intriguing. York are currently 13th in their debut Super League campaign, with two matches of the regular season remaining. A club still adjusting to the step up in class has nonetheless persuaded a proven NRL regular — and a State of Origin representative — to commit his next three years to the project.
McInnes will not pull on a York shirt until 2027, meaning the Knights' faithful have a lengthy wait. But the calibre of player heading their way gives the club and its supporters something tangible to build towards, even as they navigate the closing weeks of a tough first season at the highest level.
