Dragons raid rivals to sign emerging star Atkinson to play five-eighth

Shane Flanagan and the St George Ilawarra Dragons have pulled off a much lauded archrival raid, snatching emerging young gun Daniel Atkinson from local rivals the Cronulla Sharks with a $1.5 million deal.

Atkinson, 23, has today agreed to join the Dragons from the start of the 2026 NRL season on a three-year deal. He’ll then earn around $500,000 a season on that deal through to 2028.

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The 20-game rookie had tested the open player market and then asked the Sharks if they wanted to keep him on similar coin but Cronulla simply couldn’t afford to pay the 23-year-old Italian international that much when they also have Braydon Trindall and superstar Nicho Hynes already playing in the seven and six jerseys for the foreseeable future.

There was interest from elsewhere in the NRL, most notably from the Dolphins – the Queensland club had imagined Atkinson as a long-term partner for Isaiya Katoa, but they too couldn’t match the $1.5 million package the Dragons tabled.

Atkinson will play five-eighth alongside St George’s other halves pickup, Lachlan Ilias, from 2026.

That will likely mean Kyle Flanagan (this year’s five-eighth) drops to a utility role.

#NRL whispers 🔴⚪🐉 The @NRL_Dragons have got their five-eighth target, signing young star Daniel Atkinson from @CronullaSharks

Deal reportedly three years, $500K a season; Sharks couldn't match Dragons' offer financially

(via @heraldsunsport) pic.twitter.com/cYW585sJHe

— The Sporting Base – NRL (@BaseNrl) December 4, 2024

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Cronulla have already told Atkinson they won’t be releasing him early – a situation the Dragons aren’t too worried about considering they have Ilias, Flanagan junior, and their own junior gun Lyhkan King-Togia for their next campaign. That setup suggests Flanangan and Ilias will play six and seven respectively before Atkinson joins.

The Sharks poaching raid continues a strong few weeks for Flanagan senior in the market; he’s already managed to pick up veteran stars like Damien Cook (to play hooker with Jacob Liddle), Valentine Holmes, and Clinton Gutherson, the last of whom should be an excellent tutor for Tyrell Sloan as he continues to learn the minutiae of fullback.

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Through 2025, the now-Dragons bound Atkinson will very likely play 14 off the bench – should he make the squad at all – as Craig Fitzgibbon appears to favour the Hynes/Trindall halves combo more.