Jeral Skelton joins Wests Tigers, Josh Addo-Carr committed to Bulldogs, Kodi Nikorima signs Dolphins extension
The Wests Tigers have moved to replenish their 2025 roster by signing a Bulldogs winger. Plus, a Dolphins playmaker has extended his time at the club with a new deal. TRANSFER NEWS
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The Wests Tigers have moved to replenish their 2025 roster by signing Bulldogs winger Jeral Skelton.
Wests Tigers CEO Shane Richardson has made no secret of his desire to use a war chest of around $2 million to elevate this year’s wooden-spoon favourites from the competition cellar.
Skelton will be part of the on-going rebuild, signing a two-year deal to join fellow 2025 Wests Tigers recruits Jarome Luai and Sunia Turuva.
The Bulldogs were willing to retain Skelton, but with the likes Josh Addo-Carr, Blake Wilson and Jacob Kiraz ahead of him, Canterbury weren’t willing to stand in his way of accepting a salary of in excess of $230,000 of which it’s understood the Wests Tigers have paid.
Skelton, who broke the news to his Dogs teammates at training today, has played three NRL games this season with the bollocking winger scoring two tries.
ADDO-CARR COMMITTED TO BULLDOGS
-Fatima Kdouh
Canterbury flyer Josh Addo-Carr is ready to shun NRL rivals come November 1 to commit to coach Cameron Ciraldo’s Bulldogs rebuild less than 12 months after the likes of Newcastle and Parramatta were circling amid rumours of unrest at Belmore.
Addo-Carr and his manager Mario Tartak will sit down with Canterbury general manager Phil Gould in the coming weeks to kick-off contract negotiations with the star winger keen to lock in his future with the club beyond 2025.
The 29-year-old was one the club’s first marquee signatures in the roster revamp in late 2020, along with Matt Burton, but watched the Bulldogs slump to a wooden spoon during his final year with Melbourne in 2021.
Addo-Carr admits his time at Belmore has been a roller coaster both on and off the field.
Addo-Carr and Gould held a series of meetings at the end of last year about his future as speculation swirled he was on the nose with some Canterbury officials amid talk of a potential early release from his contract.
That speculation only intensified after the NRL hit Addo-Carr with a two-game ban for his role in a brawl during the Koori Knockout in the off-season. It put Addo-Carr on the radar of multiple clubs, including the Knights, Eels, Dragons and Tigers.
But any doubts or uncertainty no longer exist for Addo-Carr or the Bulldogs.
“Of course (I want to stay),” Addo-Carr said.
“I took a chance on this club three years ago. Obviously it (the success) didn’t pan out straight away and it definitely is going to plan now. “I’d like to think that I have helped this club in some sort of way and I’m so proud to be a part of this playing group and what Ciro (Ciraldo) has brought to this club.
“It was a frustrating two years. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. It’s definitely made me hungrier and want more success.
“It’s not losing, it’s learning. I’m enjoying footy and life outside of footy as well, that’s probably why I’m so happy.”
The Bulldogs are finals bound for the first time since 2016 and will rely on Addo-Carr’s premiership calibre heading into the finals series, where the former NSW Blues winger believes the side is a dark horse.
The two-time premiership winner credited Ciraldo’s shrewd off-season recruitment, including the likes of Stephen Crichton, Jaeman Salmon and Connor Tracey, as the driving force behind Canterbury’s surge up the NRL ladder and into finals contention.
“With all due respect to other players that I did play with when I first came here, I feel like we have the right players and the right talent, right now,” Addo-Carr said.
“The players here now have bought into what Ciro has brought to the club. Critta (Crichton) has come, Connor Tracey and Jaeman Salmon, just really good fellas but they are willing to work hard and it has rubbed on the younger fellas coming through.
“I know how much hard we have put in over the last 12 months, especially this year. It’s no surprise that we are we are (on the ladder). “There is still a lot of hard work ahead of us, which we know. But it makes me so proud to be a part of this playing group and this club.
“I think we can do something pretty special in the next couple of weeks.”
Saturday’s clash against the Dolphins in Bundaberg will be Addo-Carr’s third game after being sidelined for nine weeks with a hamstring injury.
While Addo-Carr has been in fine touch since returning, he admitted fearing having to come back through reserve grade given how well the side was travelling while he was out injured.
“Of course, you do think about it,” Addo-Carr said.
“We have some good players here like Wilso (Blake Wilson) and Jeral Skelton, he did a really good job for us in my absence.
“Just seeing how much those boys worked over the pre-season, and through the season, I’m so proud of those fellas who took their opportunity.
“It’s a healthy competition and that’s what you want to be better every day. They are keeping me on my toes, definitely.
“I’m just happy to be back playing football with the lads. Obviously they have been going really good this year and I just want to be a part of it.”
DOLPHINS LOCK DOWN NIKORIMA
-Travis Meyn
Incoming Dolphins coach Kristian Woolf has locked down his playmaking spine after reborn five-eighth Kodi Nikorima inked a contract extension to remain at Redcliffe.
In the lead-up to his 200th NRL match against the Bulldogs in Bundaberg on Saturday, Nikorima has agreed to a new two-year contract with the Dolphins.
The deal will keep the former Broncos playmaker at the Dolphins until at least the end of the 2026 NRL season.
Nikorima, 30, has resurrected his NRL career at Redcliffe as a foundation Dolphins signing following some turbulent seasons at the Warriors and Rabbitohs after he left Brisbane midway through 2019.
He has made the Dolphins’ No. 6 jersey his own and will continue to partner rising halfback Isaiya Katoa at the scrumbase when Woolf takes over from Wayne Bennett at season’s end.
The retention of Nikorima ensures the Dolphins’ first-choice spine of Nikorima, Katoa, fullback Hamison Tabuai-Fidow and hooker Jeremy Marshall-King is locked down heading into Woolf’s first pre-season in charge of an NRL club.
Dolphins CEO Terry Reader said the experienced Nikorima was an important signing for the club.
“We are very pleased to have secured the services of Kodi for another two years,” he said.
“He has been consistently dangerous for us in the halves since joining the Dolphins last year. He and Isaiya Katoa have built a nice partnership in the halves.
“With Isaiya already locked in for an extended term, the signing of Kodi gives us great stability in the spine, especially when you note that hooker Jeremy Marshall-King and fullback Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow are all committed to long-term contracts.”
The Dolphins stabilised their late-season crash with a thrilling golden-point win against the Warriors last Sunday at Suncorp Stadium.
Sitting eighth on the ladder with four games to play, the Dolphins’ destiny is in their own hands with matches against the Bulldogs, Storm, Broncos and Knights to finish their second NRL campaign.
They will likely need to win at least two of those matches to secure a maiden NRL finals berth in Bennett’s last season at the club before he moves to South Sydney.
TAUMALOLO BRUSHES OVERSEAS INTEREST
-Michael Carayannis, Peter Badel
Cowboys veteran Jason Taumalolo has rejected an immediate approach to play overseas instead insisting he wants to finish his career as a one club man.
It all but ends any suggestions that Taumalolo would be squeezed out of North Queensland at the end of this year.
It is understood that Catalans pursued Taumalolo in the hope of getting him out of his million dollar contract with the Cowboys. While North Queensland would have most likely looked favourably should Taumalolo have wanted an immediate exit, the former Dally M player of the year turned down Catalans approach.
Instead the French-based Super League club opted to sign Tevita Pangai Jnr instead.
It comes as Japanese rugby also inquired about Taumalolo’s availability.
While there has been lingering suggestions that Taumalolo could be on the move, his repeated rejection of interest outside the Cowboys is the biggest indication yet that he will finish his career in North Queensland.
Taumalolo has three years left on his $1 million contract despite his form dipping in recent seasons.
Taumalolo’s management confirmed a code defection to Japanese rugby was an option, while Catalans also had an eye on the former Cowboys co-captain.
“There was some interest in Jase,” said his agent Chris Orr of PSM. “He had some options to go to the English Super League or Japanese rugby and we had some preliminary talks with a number of clubs.
“But Jason wants to stay loyal to the Cowboys. We had a meeting with the Cowboys recently and there’s no issues there at all.Jase loves the club. He has captained the side and he has set himself a goal to finish his career as a one-club legend who hopefully becomes the first player to reach 300 games for the Cowboys.”
In March 2017, Taumalolo signed the historic decade-long contract when he was the most damaging forward in the game.
A lingering knee issue has also been raised casting doubt on if Taumalolo would see out the mega deal.
While Taumalolo seems certain to remain a Cowboy, his teammate Valentine Holmes may be squeezed out at the end of the season despite 12 months left on his contract.
Holmes met with St George Illawarra coach Shane Flanagan in Townsville last week as the Dragons stepped up their pursuit of the Queensland outside back.
DOLPHINS STAR TO FOLLOW BENNETT TO RABBITOHS
—Tyson Jackson
South Sydney have announced the signing of Dolphins utility Euan Aitken.
Aitken will follow coach Wayne Bennett on a three year deal from next season.
Head of Football Mark Ellison said Atiken is expected to play in the Rabbitohs’ forward pack, and will bring experience and strengthen their attack.
“Euan is a proven performer at NRL level and has also played representative football, all ingredients that will bring experience and ability to our forward pack over the next three seasons,” Ellison said.
“He is uncompromising in defence and can find the try line in attack.
“We’re excited about bringing Euan to our Club for the 2025 pre-season and beyond.”
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