V'landys reveals reason for Tedesco's Ashes withdrawal

Fresh from being named the 2025 RLPA Players' Champion, James Tedesco has withdrawn from contention for the Ashes series.

It's a huge blow to Kevin Walters who is set to name his squad in the coming weeks.

The news was confirmed this morning with Tedesco stepping aside in order to be best man at his brother's wedding.

"One of the players that was selected is James Tedesco and he has pulled out because he has his brother's wedding and he is best man," Peter V'landys said on Tuesday morning.

"I asked him to think about it and he feels he wont be doing the right thing by his family. It's a shame because he deserved his place in the team.

"I've let Kevin Walters know and we will now go back to the drawing board. he agonised over it because he really wanted to be there."

Tedesco, who played every game this season, managed to have plenty of impact from fullback, having run for 4,862 metres throughout the season, helping take his side into the finals after losing plenty of experience during the off-season.

He is widely expected to be named player of the year at Wednesday night's Dally M.

Tedesco led the league with 164 tackle breaks and was third for line break assists with 27, showing his impact in the attack beyond just his running.