St George Illawarra Dragons Head Coach Shane Flanagan Lost His Wife Today-SAD NEWS

St George Illawarra Dragons have completed their second signing in quick succession, with Christian Tuipulotu joining Raymond Faitala-Mariner in Shane Flanagan’s ranks.

Manly agreed to allow the winger to pursue options elsewhere after he fell down the pecking order on the Northern Beaches and the Dragons have now pounced following the season-ending injury suffered by Corey Allan.

Tuipulotu, who was contracted to the Sea Eagles through until 2025, sought an immediate release to link up with Flanagan after reportedly forming a close bond with the new head coach during his time as an assistant with Manly.

The Dragons have been in the market for new players since Flanagan took over after Anthony Griffin’s rocky tenure came to an end last year with the 22-year-old signing a two-year deal.

They have gone after a number of stars, including Addin Fonua-Blake and Tom Dearden, to try and bolster their side after years of underachievement, but have mostly come up short.

Yet the opportunistic signings of Faitala-Mariner and Tuipulotu are a welcome boost under a month out from the new campaign starting.

“Christian is a big body who can add some strike out of the backfield and will be a valuable addition to the club,” Flanagan said.

“We have some good outside backs coming through at the Dragons but having lost Corey Allan for the season it was important for us to add some NRL experience to the backline for this year.”

Tuipulotu made 32 appearances for the Sea Eagles after joining them in 2020 from the Sydney Roosters, scoring 13 tries in the process.

However, the Tongan international looked set to lose his spot out on the wing after Manly recruited heavily in outside backs for the season ahead.

Jaxson Paulo and Tommy Talau have both joined Anthony Seibold’s side, while Jason Saab appears to have locked down one spot already having previously inked a long-term extension.