Wests Tigers, New South Wales and Australian front rower Aaron Woods has been signed by the Canterbury Bulldogs, the club announced on Sunday afternoon.
The speculation about the destination of Woods has been building for weeks and it all came to an end as the Bulldogs announced the Wests Tigers captain would be joining them on a four-year deal which will keep him at Belmore until at least the end of the 2021 season for an unreported sum.
Woods, who made his debut in the 2011 season has played 133 games for the Tigers to this point, while also playing nine Test matches for the Kangaroos and 11 State of Origin matches for the Blues.
The Tigers captain was recently named in the Kangaroos squad for the Anzac Test against New Zealand next Friday night and is a likely starter and possible captain choice for the New South Wales Blues when the State of Origin series rolls around in a few weeks time.
The 26-year-old was seen as part of the Tigers big four, who have crumbled in the last couple of weeks with Mitchell Moses to be at the Parramatta Eels next year and speculation still running rampant over the contract situation of likely New South Wales fullback James Tedesco.
Only Luke Brooks has been re-signed to this point by the Tigers, and they will now set about re-building their squad for 2018.
Bulldogs CEO Raelene Castle said she was delighted with the signing.
“Aaron is an outstanding footballer who has played at the highest level and is someone who will bring both experience and leadership to the Bulldogs.
Equally, he is a quality human being and someone who I know will fit into the culture of a club with strong family values.”
Coach Des Hasler said he was looking forward to the opportunity to coach Woods from 2018.
“Aaron will bring a great deal to the Bulldogs, both on and off the field. He is proven in both the International and State arenas and that level of experience will be most valuable to our club.”
Wests Tigers chair Marina Go thanked Woods for his commitments to the joint venture.
“On behalf of everyone at Wests Tigers I’d like to thank Aaron for the way that he has represented the club over the last seven seasons,” said Go.
“Since taking on the Captaincy last season Aaron has further developed and has become a great role model to his team mates and all at Wests Tigers.
“While we’re incredibly disappointed that Aaron will be leaving Wests Tigers at the end of the season we wish him well in the future and look forward to supporting him as a Wests Tigers player for the remainder of this year,” she said.
The move to the Bulldogs for Woods continues a big week of player movement, with the Tigers already snaring cagey half Josh Reynolds for next year from Canterbury.
Bulldogs captain James Graham, who has a contract for next year, but has had his place and contract with the club brought into question is now also likely to leave Belmore, with the signing of Woods rumoured to be as a replacement for the Englishman.
The Tigers recently signed new coach Ivan Cleary, dismissing Jason Taylor after just three weeks of the 2017 season, and he made it awfully clear to his playing group they would either be on the team bus, or cast aside.
With Moses gone, Woods now joining him out the door and Tedesco looking more likely to sign elsewhere with every passing day, it would appear Cleary’s ground rules are coming into effect at the Tigers as they look to rescue their stuttering campaign.
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