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Phil Gould has held another not-so-secret meeting, this time with in-demand prop Addin Fonua-Blake.<\/p>\n
Warriors star Fonua-Blake, along with Penrith playmaker Jarome Luai, is the hottest target on the NRL open market.<\/p>\n
The former Manly forward is seeking a return to Sydney on compassionate grounds in 2025 and the suitors are queuing up for his services. Fonua-Blake has been in Sydney this week exploring his options.<\/p>\n
A day after reportedly meeting with Wests Tigers officials, the 28-year-old was on Friday snapped at the airport catching up with Canterbury general manager of football Phil Gould.<\/p>\n
He is also expected to meet with St George Illawarra officials about the prospect of rejoining one of his junior clubs.<\/p>\n
The meeting with Gould won\u2019t come as a surprise given the premiership-winning coach stated this week that \u201cAFB\u201d was a player of interest.<\/p>\n
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Canterbury powerbroker Phil Gould meets with Warriors star Addin Fonua-Blake.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAddin is a quality player,\u201d Gould said on SEN Afternoons with Jimmy Smith. \u201cI spent a little bit of time with the Warriors during COVID and got to see Addin first-hand \u2013 he\u2019s a quality player.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s not cheap, though. I\u2019d imagine there\u2019d be a lot of interest in Addin.\u201d<\/p>\n Gould has been sprung in a series of meetings with current or prospective Bulldogs players in recent times. The veteran administrator was recently photographed catching up with out-of-favour Canterbury club captain Raymond Faitala-Mariner, who has been allowed to explore his options despite being contracted for a further two seasons.<\/p>\n On this occasion, \u201cGus\u201d was papped alongside Fonua-Blake and his manager, Tyran Smith.<\/p>\n Speaking at the annual Robert Stone memorial golf day at the Beverly Park Golf Course on Friday, Dragons forward Blake Lawrie said Fonua-Blake would be a welcome addition to the Red V.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember at training one day, he was doing a bit of contact with a couple of boys and he was tearing boys apart,\u201d Lawrie said.<\/p>\n \u201cAddin\u2019s a classy player. I\u2019ve played against him for a number of years now. I remember when was at Manly \u2013 he\u2019s got the best footwork as a front-rower.<\/p>\n \u201c[After] the year that he\u2019s had at Warriors, he is a guaranteed top-three prop in the comp, if not number one.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t really want to comment too much because that\u2019s Flanno\u2019s [coach Shane Flanagan\u2019s role] with recruitment, but to play alongside him it would make everyone\u2019s job a lot easier because of the presence that he has and the sort of player he is.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a world-class player and he demands respect.<\/p>\n \u201cLook at the stats and the numbers speak for themselves and the solid game that he plays. It takes three to four players to bring him down.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll try to get that big fish and obviously, like I said, it\u2019d be awesome to play alongside him.\u201d<\/p>\n Sports news, results and expert commentary.<\/i><\/b> Sign up for our Sport newsletter<\/i><\/b>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\nMost Viewed in Sport<\/h2>\n
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