This morning the Sea Eagles Club and players were informed of Kieran Foran’s decision to sign with the Parramatta Eels from 2016.

Sea Eagles Head Coach Geoff Toovey acknowledged that while the club is disappointed that it has been unable to retain Kieran, he thanked him for his service to the Club.

“Kieran is a fantastic player and a wonderful young man. He has played an integral role in the Club’s recent on-field successes and will do so for the remainder of this season,” Toovey said.

‘Kieran has the utmost respect of everyone at the Club and we are proud to have seen him develop into the player that he is today.”

“While today’s news is disappointing, we respect his decision and will move on quickly to ensure that’s we’re focused for Friday night’s clash with the Bulldogs at Brookvale Oval.”

Sea Eagles CEO Joe Kelly also paid tribute to the service Kieran has provided.

“Kieran has been an incredible talent for the Sea Eagles for many years and it’ll be sad for all of us to see him leave at the end of the season,” Mr Kelly said.

“I have great admiration for Kieran, not only as a footballer but most importantly as a person. He is a quality individual. I recognise that it has been an immensely difficult decision for Kieran.”

“The Club is now in a position of having the resources necessary to recruit some of the best talent in the marketplace, to ensure that the Sea Eagles remain a dominant team in the NRL.”

“We have an extremely bright future here at Manly. There is some prodigious young talent rising through our junior ranks, we have increased our resources in the football department, and we are investing in state of the art training facilities.”

Foran, 24, has played 129 NRL matches for the Club since making his debut against the Canberra Raiders back in Round 15, 2009. He has played in two NRL Grand Finals (2011 and 2013), guiding the side to the premiership in 2011.

The Ellerslie Eagles and Asquith Magpies junior has represented New Zealand on 18 occasions, and has also captained his country twice in 2013.

The Sea Eagles take on the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs at Brookvale Oval on Friday Night. Tickets available through Ticketmaster.