Words by Nick Crockford
Dolphins have added versatility and experience to their 2023 NRL playing roster with the signing of Euan Aitken from the Warriors.
The 26-year-old former Dragon began his career as a centre, but has been playing in the second row for the Warriors - and is equally adept at both positions.
He will bring an adaptable skill set to the Dolphins’ foundation playing squad after signing a two-year agreement to be part of the club’s entry to the NRL.
Strong player
With the Warriors based at Redcliffe’s Moreton Daily Stadium for the 2022 NRL season, Aitken will train out of the same change rooms and in the same gym next year for Dolphins.
"It was a family first thought," Aitken said. "If it was just me I probably would have seen out the contract.
"It's a great club and has some great people running the place. There's definitely fond memories here and it was a hard decision to leave."
Dolphins’ chief executive Terry Reader said Aitken would bring balance to the new team’s squad and provide depth in two important positions.
Valuable
“Euan is a strong player who will add around 150 games of NRL experience to our squad when he joins us at the end of the year,” said Reader.
“Importantly, he is skillful enough to play centre or on the edge at second row - and that is a valuable commodity in today’s NRL competition.
“He will also be able to bring some familiarity around our home base for our new squad after spending a full season training and playing there with his current club.
“Euan and the Warriors are currently three wins from three games at our home base of Moreton Daily Stadium this season – we hope we can see the same results with the Dolphins next year.”
National honours
After making his NRL debut with the Dragons in 2015, Aitken gained national honours when he played for the Australian Prime Minister’s XIII against Papua New Guinea and represented NSW Country in 2016.
Born in Pambula, NSW, Aitken joined Warriors last season and currently has a career record of 49 tries from 145 NRL games.
As a junior he attained the highest levels of representation, turning out for both the Australian Schoolboys and Junior Kangaroos.
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