Parramatta's salary cap squeeze has seen the club lose one of its rising stars with damaging backrower Marate Niukore officially joining the Warriors.
The former Junior Kiwi has inked a lucrative three-year deal that will see him join Nathan Brown's side in 2023 and return to his native Auckland.
Niukore was developed through the Warriors' junior pathways but has played 77 NRL games for Parramatta since joining the club in 2017 and debuting a year later.
2021 marked a breakout year for Niukore, who averaged 100 metres, 41 post-contact metres and 22 tackles in his 21 appearances for Brad Arthur's side, and highlighted his utility value by playing in the centres at stages during the season.
Brown said he was thrilled to add such a quality piece to his young team ahead of what shapes to be a pivotal year in the Warriors' bid to become a premiership contender.
“Marata has developed into a high quality second rower who’ll bring so much to our squad,” said Brown.
“We’ve been keeping a close eye on him and have been really impressed with the way he has developed his all-round game. It’ll be great to have him on our roster from 2023.”
Warriors CEO Cameron George said securing Niukore's signature was a top priority for the club.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to sign Marata on a long-term deal,” said George.
“We had him marked down as one of our key recruitment targets once we were able to go to the market for players off contract after the 2022 season.
“His home is Auckland, he knows our club really well and he’s now a well-established first grader who’s going to be a key player for us. He’s a really big part of our long-term future through to 2026.”
More to come