St George Illawarra veteran Aaron Woods has confirmed he will leave the club to join Manly this week.
The 32-year-old middle forward will move to the Sea Eagles in a player swap, which is yet to be announced by the clubs.
“As of today I think both clubs are talking to each other. There are a couple of young players at the Sea Eagles who want to go to the Dragons, Manly have asked to take me in return,” Woods told Triple M’s Rush Hour on Monday.
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“Hopefully it will be done either tonight or tomorrow.”
The Sea Eagles will become Woods’ fifth club across 13 seasons in the NRL.
He played his first 146 games for the Tigers, and has since suited up for the Sharks, Bulldogs, and Dragons.
He played 14 Origin games for New South Wales, the last in 2017, and represented Australia 17 times between 2014 and 2017.
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He has been knocked down the pecking order at the Red V, and was named 18th man for Sunday’s game in which his Dragons were thumped by Cronulla.
While the club swap news was a surprise to Woods, he admits it is a good deal for all parties.
He also admitted to being “a tragic Manly fan” as a youngster.
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He’s already spoken to new Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold about his role at the club.
“Apparently it happened on Friday. It was more the fact Manly showed interest in me. It just made sense, it’s a good swap. It works well for both parties,” Woods said.
“I thought i was going to finish the year at (the Dragons), but they came to me and said ‘Manly have approached us’… I don’t want to stop the development of these kids at the club.
“I’ve had a conversation with Seibs, worked out what he wanted from me, and it sounded really good.
“I’m just thankful for the opportunity and I can’t wait to start.”
Seibold has steered the Sea Eagles to two wins from three games – they’ve also had a bye – in an impressive start to the season.
The Dragons, on the other hand, have won one game from three, and last week told coach Anthony Griffin he will need to reapply for his job.
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