ANDY Lynch is joining the growing band of Super League players who are heading to Australia – but Castleford fans need not worry just yet.

The former Bulls captain, 35, plans to emigrate Down Under with his Australian wife April and their three children when he finally hangs up his boots.

Tigers coach Daryl Powell reckons the hard-hitting prop can play into his late thirties, a la Steve Menzies, but Lynch himself is already looking ahead.

The popular forward, who faces the Bulls in his testimonial game on Sunday, told the T&A: “We’re going to move to Australia when I finish playing and it’s something I’m looking forward to.

“I don’t know exactly what I’ll be doing yet but I think I’m going to move away from rugby league completely and work in a 9-5 job.

“I’m a qualified joiner and did that while I was part-time in the academy at Cas.

“I also did my forklift licence the year before last and am doing my HGV licence this year to get that under my belt too.

“It gives me another option along with personal training, which I have done to level three, and I just want to do a few different courses to get a feel of what I want to do.

“I’ve spoken to a few people about working on the docks in Australia.

“A lot of ex-rugby players do that but, when it comes nearer the time, I’ll start looking at it more closely. I’m really enjoying my rugby right now.”

Indeed, Lynch says there is “no timescale” for his move to Australia with his other half and their three sons – Tristen, eight, Kye, seven, and three-year-old Corey.

He added: “I’m quite fit and healthy at the moment, touch wood, so we’ll see how this year goes and take it from there.

“My wife is Australian and the kids have all got Australian passports, so they’re sorted and it should be quite easy to get in over there.

“But my main focus at the moment is playing and doing well for Cas.

“At the end of the day, age is just a number.

“As long as your body feels fine and you’re mentally and physically fresh and able to cope with the impact, then I don’t see why you can’t carry on for a few more years.

“The likes of JP (Jamie Peacock), Adrian Morley and Steve Menzies have set the standard and shown it can be done.”

Lynch accepts that emulating last season’s feats will take some doing.

Castleford reached the Challenge Cup final and finished fourth in Super League, while key players Daryl Clark and Craig Huby have since departed.

Yet Lynch insisted: “We set a good standard last year and we’ve got to look to maintain that and improve on it.

“It’s more cut-throat this year than last season and everybody is going to be under pressure with the competition for places.

“If you don’t perform you’re not going to be in the team the following week.

“Daryl is a brilliant coach to play for and has got the players working for each other.

“I think everyone wants to improve and they have bought into his philosophy.

“People believe in the game-plans so we’ve just got to go out and execute them really.

“He’s looking for improvement all the time and I don’t think anyone expected us to do what we did last year.

“We’ve got to work even harder this season because teams will know what we’re about.”

At Wheldon Road on Sunday, centre stage will be his.

Lynch was particularly keen to secure Bradford as the opposition for his testimonial game as he spent some of the happiest years of his career there.

He actually credits his seven-year stay at Odsal with shaping him into the person he is today.

Lynch played more than 200 games for the Bulls after leaving Castleford at the end of 2004 and was part of the side who beat Wests Tigers in the World Club Challenge.

“2005 was a great year, my first year there, although it ended in disappointment with not playing in the Grand Final because Moz came over and ended up playing,” said Lynch.

“But we had the World Club Challenge in 2006 and beat Wests Tigers at Huddersfield.

“That was a good year but every year I was at Bradford was a special year.

“They’re a great set of people and I still keep in touch with a lot of players from that team now.

“It was a great, close-knit group at the time and the fans were superb.

“It was a special place and Cas is similar in terms of interacting with the fans.”

Lynch was sold to Hull FC for a six-figure sum at the end of 2011 as the Bulls’ financial problems began to unravel.

He explained: “A lot of people think I left of my own accord, but it was a mutual agreement.

“At the time I don’t think a lot of people knew that Bradford were in financial difficulty.

“When Hull came in with a bid for me, the first thing that Bradford said was ‘no, you’re not going anywhere’.

“That put paid to it but when it became apparent they were willing to pay money for me, things started to change.

“At the time I was speaking to Mick (Potter) about extending my contract but I got a phone call saying ‘we’ve got a good offer from Hull here, what are you thinking?’

“We came to an agreement whereby Bradford got the fee and I got a two-year deal at Hull FC.

“I would have loved to have stayed at Bradford – the fans and the players were fantastic.

“The Bulls played a huge part in my career and probably made me the person I am now.”