St George Illawarra’s off-season from hell has continued with Canberra hooker Zac Woolford the latest in a long line of transfer failures under new coach Shane Flanagan.
The Dragons had approached the Raiders hoping that Woolford, who is third choice behind Danny Levi and Tom Starling, might be allowed to leave – especially as the club also have Adrian Trevilyan waiting in the wings.
Ricky Stuart, however, knocked back the approach despite having previously told Woolford that he was free to speak to other clubs at the end of the 2023 season.
St George Illawarra have Jacob Liddle and youngster Connor Muhleisen as their options at dummy half, as well as new arrival Kyle Flanagan, who is likely to begin the year at five eighth given the total lack of other options with only he and Ben Hunt on the books as recognised halves.
New signing Ronald Volkman departed almost immediately following medical tests that revealed a long-standing shoulder issue, causing the club to opt against registering his contract with the NRL.
The 21-year-old joined from the Warriors to compete with Kyle Flanagan for a starting berth, but only last a week of training, all of which was done in the yellow vest worn by players who are training without contact.
Volkman joined just before the Christmas break, in the same week in which the Dragons were knocked back by two options, Tom Dearden and Jack Welsby, as well as losing Junior Amone, who had his contract deregistered following an assault conviction.
South Sydney have been successful in their search for depth in the hooking role, with Greek international Peter Mamouzelos extending his contract at the club by three years.
That almost certainly paves the way for him to take over from Damien Cook, who is 32 and has a deal until the end of the 2025 season.
Mamouzelos is a stalwart of the NSW Cup side and has deputised in first grade when required, playing seven games for the Bunnies since debuting in 2021.
The Wests Tigers have landed a key backline signing with the long-awaited arrival of Justin Olam from the Melbourne Storm.
Shawn Blore will move the other way, heading to Victoria as part of a swap deal.
The Papua New Guinean star has signed a three-year contract with the Tigers and adds much-needed punch to the outside backs.
He had been on the outer at Melbourne after indifferent performances in 2023, but is a proven NRL centre who has won a Premiership, been named Dally M Centre of the Year and made 14 appearances at rep level for the Kumuls.
