Owen Trout will officially leave Super League for the NRL at the end of the season, with his exit from Leigh Leopards now confirmed.
Trout, who made his England debut at the end of last season against Australia and featured in the opening Test defeat at Wembley Stadium.
A graduate from the Leeds Rhinos academy, the forward joined Huddersfield as part of a swap deal with Kruise Leeming in 2020, and stayed at the Giants for four seasons.
Ahead of 2024 he joined Leigh, and that move has seen him elevate his career and become one of the strongest props in the Super League competition.
After three seasons, he will now depart the Leigh Sports Village and head to Australia, where he will join Cronulla Sharks for the next two seasons.
Trout is the Sharks’ first signing in over 12 months, with the club opting not to recruit anyone for the current season. He will work under Craig Fitzgibbon, a man who is known to the English game having played for Hull FC in 2010 and 2011.
A man with 124 top flight matches to his name, the 26-year-old becomes the fourth Super League player to have NRL moves confirmed for 2027, with the Leeds trio of Harry Newman, James McDonnell and Mikolaj Oledzki all joining Perth Bears.
Cronulla’s General Manager, Darren Mooney, is confident Trout will adapt to playing in a new competition.
“Owen’s style of play is well suited for success in the NRL and we believe he is at the right stage of his career to make the move,” Mooney said.
“He still has a job to do at Leigh, and our focus is firmly on the current NRL season, but we look forward to welcoming him to the club in due course.”
Luke Robinson sacked, Hull KR struggling and why it could actually be Warrington Wolves’ year? – click here to watch the latest episode of the Serious About Rugby League Show
