St George Illawarra Dragons' young gun Jayden Sullivan has reportedly agreed to terms with the club on a new contract.
It had been reported just weeks ago that Sullivan was set to depart the Red V after knocking back a three-year contract extension, however, in a mammoth move for the club, it appears the young star has made an about-face on his contract decision.
Sullivan, who is a former junior New South Wales State of Origin representative and led the Dragons to the SG Ball crown in 2019 alongside Talatau Amone and Tyrrel Sloan is seen as the future of the club.
He, Amone and Sloan all managed first-grade matches at the back-end of the 2021 season, and are likely to figure highly in Anthony Griffin's plans during 2022.
According to Fox Sports, Sullivan's new deal will see him remain at the Red V until the end of 2025, being a three-year extension on the back of his current deal which expires at the end of 2022.
The 20-year-old has made six NRL appearances, but has also impressed during limited time in reserve grade in between the competition being suspended and cancelled during the last two seasons.
While Ben Hunt is at the club, it's likely he will be partnered by one of Sullivan or Amone, while the other will fight with Moses Mbye for the number 14 jersey on the bench.
Sullivan spent the final three games of the 2021 season playing at dummy half, indicating he could fill that position for a season if need be, then join Amone in the halves following Hunt's likely departure at the end of 2023.
The young gun, while seemingly jumped in the queue by Amone, was first to debut out of the duo though and would still have an eye to partnering Hunt in the halves during 2022.
It had been understood Sullivan was in the sights of many clubs before these reports, while Amone was also on the radar for other clubs, including the Dolphins as they build for their first season in the competition.
The club are yet to make an official announcement on the future of Sullivan, however, with a ten-day cooling off period, the official announcement - should these reports prove correct - may not come for over a week.
Moses wasted on the bench and I’m not sure where they expecting him to play. Also I’d give Amone time as hooker.