Up and coming half Cooper Johns has inked a one-year extension to remain with the Melbourne Storm.
Johns, 22, broke through into Craig Bellamy's first-grade side on five occasions this season and managed to cross the line for the first four-pointer of his career in Round 12 against the Broncos.
Cooper Johns scores his first #NRL try! ๐ #TelstraPremiership #NRLBroncosStorm pic.twitter.com/OhGRywXWEt
— NRL (@NRL) May 27, 2021
Although widely seen as a second-string option by those outside the four-walls at AAMI Park, Melbourne's general manager of football Frank Ponissi stated that Johns' new deal was a just reward for effort.
โCooper has continued to develop his game this season," Ponissi said in an official statement issued by the club on Friday morning.
โHe had four starts in the halves during a critical part of our season and showed the improvement that we have seen him display in training.
โHeโs definitely deserved this contract extension as a member of our top 30 squad and we expect Cooper to continue to grow as a half during the next 12 months.โ
Despite this confirmation that his stay south of the border was set to extend, you could forgive Johns' father - former Knight and league identity Matthew Johns - for seeking clarification.
Just last month, Cooper pulled the wool over Matthew's eyes in a NSFW prank when he suggested that his stint with the Storm was likely to be over after a stand-off with Bellamy.
Johns has not been selected for the Storm's qualifying final clash with Manly this weekend.
