The South Sydney Rabbitohs have locked up the signature of likely future starting dummy half Peter Mamouzelos.
The dummy half, who has already played for Greece at international level, has been forced to bide his time at the Burrow, playing just seven NRL games since he made his debut in 2021.
The back-up to Damien Cook, he will likely continue in that role over the next two years through to the end of Cook's current deal before taking over the number nine role at Redfern.
It wouldn't be unsurprising, however, if coach Jason Demetriou began to look for opportunities for Mamouzelos to play off the Rabbitohs' bench in the meantime to continue equipping him with first-grade experience.
The 23-year-old's new deal sees him extend through to the end of 2027 in a three-year extension, with the hooker having been able to negotiate with rival clubs since November 1 last year, 12 months before his current deal was due to expire.
Despite the fact he may have been able to land a starting role sooner elsewhere, Mamouzelos said there was never a doubt about his desire to remain at Redfern.
โI'm really excited to be extending my time with this Club,โ Mamouzelos said in a club statement.
โI told my manager I didn't want to go anywhere else. I've grown up here in the South Sydney area, it's always been my team and I love this Club.
โWhen I spoke to him and he said we're staying here, I was ecstatic.
โWe have the best Members and fans in the competition and it's an honour to play for them each week.
โMy family have made so many sacrifices for me to get to where I have and I can't thank them enough."
South Sydney head of football Mark Ellison commented on the increasing role Mamouzelos will play in the coming years.
โPete is a South Sydney junior that has worked hard to get into the position he finds himself with the opportunity to play more first grade in the coming seasons,โ Ellison said.
โHe is relishing the opportunity to work with one of the best hookers in our game in Damien Cook, as well as other seasoned players such as Siliva Havili, and he is the sort of player that works hard on his game and learns about the dummy half role from his team mates and his coaches.
โWe've seen him improve consistently over the past few years as he has worked his way up through the grades and he is set to play a bigger role in first grade in the coming seasons.
โWe're really happy to know that Pete sees his future here at the Rabbitohs and we're all looking forward to seeing the further progression in his game over the next four years and beyond.โ
