The St George Illawarra Dragons have signed young gun and nephew of Kyle Stanley, Cyrus Stanley-Traill on a four-year deal.
Currently 17 years of age, the deal will lock the local junior into the club with a chance to debut in the coming seasons.
The club confirmed the deal will see him commence 2024 in the SG Ball squad, before progressing to train with the top squad in 2025 on a train and trial deal at the age of just 18.
The 2024 season will likely see him play in the Jersey Flegg competition following his SG Ball commitments, with the chance of playing NSW Cup at the back end and into 2025.
The development deal will continue into 2026, with the chance of an NRL debut after Round 11 in either season, before he progresses to a Top 30 deal in 2027, the final year of his contract.
Stanley-Traill, who plays as a prop said he was excited to be joining the Dragons.
"I'm very stoked to sign with the Dragons," Stanley-Traill said in a club statement.
"I started here as junior, so I'm pretty excited to be joining them for the next four years... I've loved the coaching staff and the help and support that they've given me for the past few years.
"I've really seen what being a Dragon is all about, just being on time to training and the attitude that they bring to the sessions and the energy. I've really absorbed all of that stuff and really developed my confidence as a player."
The nephew of Kyle Stanley has been in the Dragons pathways for some time, playing his junior rugby league with Hurstville United, a club that has been the breeding ground of a number of Dragons stars over the years including Lance Thompson, Anthony Mundine and Gordon Tallis among others.
Dragons recruitment manager Ian Millward said his potential and progress earnt the deal, while also revealing other clubs were in the race for him.
"He's a player that's continued to evolve and shown huge potential - that's why the four-year deal is there," Millward said.
"There were other clubs in the race for him... He's very raw-boned, but we think he's got a really strong character and he's got some great attributes that will turn him into a high-class player.
"Unfortunately, he got an injury on the eve of the Australian Schoolboys Championships this year. He would've made it; he was pretty gutted by that... He's got a great frame, plenty of growth left in him.
"All his key indicators, at the moment through our high performance, are being hit. We wanted to reward him. He's just one of a lot of forwards we've got coming through at the moment that we're really excited about."
