Former Leeds prop Ava Seumanufagai signs new deal with Canterbury Bulldogs
Former Leeds prop Ava Seumanufagai has signed a two-year contract extension with Canterbury Bulldogs.
The 30-year-old linked up with the Bulldogs earlier this season after leaving the Rhinos in the off-season to return home for family reasons because of the pandemic.
Seumanufagai made 30 appearances for Leeds between 2019-20, winning the Challenge Cup in his final season with the club. He has played 126 NRL games to date.
Bulldogs chief executive Aaron Warburton said: “Ava has been a breath of fresh air since he arrived from Leeds. He has had to fight all the way, but has already become a real leader amongst the younger guys and someone who has really led the way in terms of his attitude at training and desire to improve.
“This has resulted in him being promoted to the senior leadership group which is testimony to how he is perceived by his fellow players.
“He brings some great experience of what is required to succeed at this level and that has rubbed off on the rest of our squad, particularly those starting out on their NRL careers.
“We look forward to him now bringing that work ethic and will to win to our group for the rest of this season and beyond.”
The Bulldogs have also announced the signing of full-back Matt Dufty from St George Illawarra Dragons on a one-year deal for the 2022 season.
The 25-year-old has made 79 NRL appearances for the Dragons since making his first team debut in 2017. He will join Canterbury’s new recruits Josh Addo-Carr, Matt Burton and Brent Naden next season.
Warburton said: “Everyone knows what an exciting player Matt Dufty is and his record of scoring 44 tries in 79 matches is testimony to the attacking flair that he brings.
“He is quick and elusive with valuable NRL experience, and we believe that he will be an outstanding complement to our backline for next season.
“We are continuing to create the squad that we believe can be successful for next season and beyond, and Matt will be someone who I am sure our fans will be excited to watch run out in the blue and white next year.”