A family crisis is set to land the Bulldogs the signature of powerhouse Storm winger Isaac Lumelume.
The Fijian international’s father lives in Sydney and was recently diagnosed with brain cancer.
To their credit, the Storm immediately released Lumelume on compassionate grounds so he could be closer to his dad.
Lumelume has been training with the Bulldogs but unable to officially sign on because the club’s roster of 30 players has been full.
But Nick Cotric’s move back to Canberra has opened a space in the club’s ranks and Lumelume is expected to be given a contract after the Christmas break.
With the strength of the Storm backline, Lumelume has played just six games since making his debut late in the 2020 season.
But the speedy Fijian has three tries in those six games and will be a handy addition to the Bulldogs’ ranks.
Fitzgibbon’s blunt message to players
New coach Craig Fitzgibbon has wasted no time enforcing some strict discipline at the Sharks.
Players were handed their new training kit for 2022 recently – and informed that if they lost or damaged their gear, they would have to pay for the replacement items themselves.
The move hasn’t gone down all that well with some of the Sharks’ senior players – but is a great lesson in accountability and real world issues that so many modern day stars struggle to deal with.
Rabbitohs sign young gun
South Sydney have picked up a lively prospect from Cronulla in former Junior Kangaroos prop Tom Giles.
Giles played in the same young Aussie team as Sam Walker, Reece Walsh and Max Feagai.
The 20-year-old has good ball skills and weighs in at 110 kilos – and is still growing.
Thr youngster is still eligible for the Flegg Cup next season but the Rabbitohs are expected to test him out in the higher grades in the trials and early season.
Warrington’s initiative paves way for Souths
English club Warrington has broken new ground in rugby league by launching high tech non-fungible tokens – and will soon be followed by South Sydney.
The tokens are collectable items, valuable digital assets that are unique.
They are the new big thing in the digital world and sports have cashed in on them, with some in the US market selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The NFTs, as they are known, feature special content – the Warrington version has a personalised video message from marquee halfback signing George Williams as well as animated images of the club jersey and home ground.
Souths plan to release their own range of NFTs early next year.
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