SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 16: Matt Doorey of the Bulldogs makes a break to score a try during the round 14 NRL match between the Wests Tigers and the Canterbury Bulldogs at Bankwest Stadium on August 16, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
Off-contract Canterbury Bulldogs young gun Matt Doorey is set to switch to the Parramatta Eels to continue his NRL career in 2023.
Doorey is off-contract at the Bulldogs, and with pre-season beginning in the coming days, seemingly unlikely to be signed by his current club.
The young second rower burst onto the scene at the back end of the 2020 season after debuting in 2019, but failed to register an NRL game in 2021 after suffering an ACL injury during the pre-season.
It left him unfit to return before the middle of the year, when he did so via the NSW Cup, with the 22-year-old making ten appearances for Mounties, who were linked with the Bulldogs for 2022.
He scored two tries, made three line breaks, and tackled at a tick over 90 per cent in those games, but struggled to have the same level of output that he did in the NRL during 2021 prior to his ACL injury.
According to The Daily Telegraph, the Sydney-born youngster will now make the switch to the Parramatta Eels, who have lost Isaiah Papali’i and Marata Niukore from their second row rotation for 2023, as well as Oregon Kaufusi, Reed Mahoney and Ray Stone more broadly from their forward pack.
To this point, Jack Murchie is the only signing likely to play on the edge, meaning Doorey could come straight into contention for minutes should the signing be completed.
It’s understood former Bulldogs boss Trent Barrett, who is now working as an assistant to Brad Arthur at the Eels, was glowing in his recommendation that the club sign Doorey.
Doorey is a former Australian Schoolboy and New South Wales under-20s player, where he captained a team in 2019 featuring now current NRL players Tuipulotu Katoa, Stephen Crichton, Jason Saab, Matt Burton, Blake Taafe, Spencer Leniu, Sam Verrills, Teig Wilton and Stefano Utoikamanu.
Source:: ZeroTackle
