The Canterbury Bulldogs have confirmed the re-signing of young gun centre Aaron Schoupp.
The 20-year-old was off-contract at the end of the year and there was a concern an off-season injury may have come into negotiations, with Schoupp set to lose most if not all of his pre-season ahead of the 2022 season.
It was revealed last Saturday by director of football Phil Gould that Schoupp needed a full rotator cuff repair of his shoulder before returning to the field.
It's a bad time to cop such an injury, with the Bulldogs undergoing a major revamp following the acquisitions of Brent Naden, Josh Addo-Carr and Matt Dufty in their back five, to go with Matt Burton, Tevita Pangai Junior, Paul Vaughan, John Asiata and Joshua Cook.
The re-signing is a show of faith in Schoupp though, with the deal being for three years, meaning he will stay at Belmore until at least the end of 2024.
In his first season of first grade, the former Illawarra Steelers junior who once played for New South Wales junior representative sides made 13 appearances, missing only a single game after his Round 11 debut.
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Chief Executive Aaron Warburton said the club was excited to retain Schoupp.
"Our strategy on recruitment and retention has very much focused on identifying the right players to take us forward, and we believe that we have unearthed a real talent in Aaron," Warburton said.
Having come into first grade this season, we have been really pleased with the way that he has stepped up to the challenge and his ability to learn.
He is a tough kid who doesn't take a backward step, and we believe that he has a very high ceiling in terms of what he can achieve.
Putting the type of players around him that we have coming next year, will only help take his game to the next level."
Schoupp will face an uphill battle to retain his spot in 2022, however, the show of faith from the club proves he is in their plans, with the talented youngster likely to push for a spot once he recovers from shoulder surgery.
