Sharks Announce Player Signings
12/07/2011 3:50:44 PM
The Sharks continue to build their playing ranks for the future with the announcement of three new signings and the retention of one of their up and coming stars.
After a number of weeks of speculation, the Sharks can officially announce that hooker Isaac De Gois and prop Mark Taufua, will be joining the club in 2012, with the pair of Newcastle Knights to be joined by Dragons premiership winning prop Jon Green.
In further good news for the club young outside back Matthew Wright has also re-signed with the Sharks for a further two seasons.
As head coach Shane Flanagan explained, the signings are another positive step forward for a Sharks club which is currently making all the right moves on the field as well as off it.
The new signings are a continuation of our efforts to build some depth into the playing ranks here at the Sharks. All are quality first grade players, Flanagan said. As for Matt Wright remaining at the club, we are very excited about that with Matt being so young, having a lot of NRL experience, with a big future still ahead of him.
De Gois, the talented hooker who previously played at the Sharks in 2007-2008, returns to the club at which he made his mark as an NRL player, while the strong running Taufua is set to complement an already formidable Sharks forward pack.
Both De Gois and Taufua have been released from contracts at the Knights and will join the Sharks next season. De Gois has signed on at the Sharks for the 2012-2013 and 2014 seasons, while Taufua will play for the Cronulla club for the next two years.
Another returning to a club with which he is very much familiar, is St George Illawarra forward Jon Green. A member of the Saints side to win the premiership in 2010, Green played lower grades at Cronulla before moving to the Bulldogs in 2006. From there he has gone on to establish himself as a regular NRL player and an important member of the Dragons squad. Green has agreed to a two year contract.
However of all the signings, one of the most significant may be that of Wright, a highly recruited Blacktown junior who debuted for the Sharks back in 2009 as an 18-year-old. Wright, who would still be eligible to play in the Toyota Cup this year, has now played 32 games in the NRL for the Sharks, including all 16 top grade games so far this season.
The announcement of the new players and the retention of Wright, comes on the heels of other important player signings including Andrew Fifita, Bryce Gibbs and Jeff Robson, the mid season acquisition of Sam Tagataese and the recent re-signings of Chad Townsend, Stewart Mills, Albert Kelly and Jayson Bukuya.
