NRL 2021: Dragons insist Cameron McInnes ‘going no where’ despite impending arrival of Andrew McCullough
About to welcome a new hooker to the club, St George Illawarra have now taken a firm stance on the immediate future of Cameron McInnes.
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The impending arrival of Andrew McCullough will not lead to the early release of Cameron McInnes with St George Illawarra emphatically declaring the Dragon “is not going anywhere”.
The prolonged saga between McCullough and the Broncos is drawing to a close after the veteran hooker was told not to show up at Brisbane training on Thursday and not to return until his future is settled.
While discussions between the parties are continuing, it is expected McCullough will arrive at St George Illawarra by next week on a three-year deal.
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The Dragons are awaiting a final decision from the Broncos regarding a potential payout before agreeing to reunite McCullough with close friend Ben Hunt and St George Illawarra coach Anthony Griffin.
Griffin has made it known McCullough is the player he wants to start at dummy half. The move will shift Cameron McInnes into the lock position and give the Dragons extra cover given the continued uncertainty surrounding Jack de Belin.
McInnes will wear No.13 when he joins the Sharks next year and has maintained he is open to the positional switch.
Despite the impending arrival of McCullough, the Dragons insist McInnes will remain at the club this year.
“Cameron is not going anywhere,” Dragons head of football Ben Haran said.
“He is an important part of what we want to achieve this year.
“There has been absolutely no talk from Cameron about wanting to leave early. Once things were sorted with his future it cleared the air more than anything else and allowed everyone to refocus.”
Privately the Sharks have also insisted they have not had any discussions with McInnes about an early arrival and they are too tight on the salary cap to accommodate the NSW squad member.
McCullough returned to Brisbane after being on loan to Newcastle last year in which he impressed, only to miss the end of the season because of a serious hamstring injury.
McCullough is off-contract at the Broncos and wants the security of an extended deal at the Dragons. He was considered a captaincy option for the Broncos this year but will add some much needed leadership to an inexperienced St George Illawarra squad.
Griffin coached McCullough at Brisbane.
The Broncos have Issac Luke on a part-time deal, with Luke an option to be pushed into the top-30, while former Manly and Newcastle rake Danny Levi has signed with Queensland Cup side Norths Devils but remains on the lookout for an NRL club.
The Dragons and the Sharks will play in the first pre-season fixture on Friday. The restricted trial will only feature players who played in less than 12 games last year.
St George Illawarra’s team includes Tariq Sims, Daniel Alvaro and young halves Jayden Sullivan and Junior Amone.
Cronulla will feature NRL experienced players including Nene MacDonald, Mawene Hiroti, Braydon Trindall, Teig Wilton and Billy Magoulias.
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Originally published as NRL 2021: Dragons insist Cameron McInnes ‘going no where’ despite impending arrival of Andrew McCullough
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