The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs have continued to build towards the future with the signing of star English prop Luke Thompson for three seasons.

The 24 year-old forward will join the club from St Helens for the start of the 2021 season.

The signing is a major coup for the Bulldogs with the English International attracting the attention of several NRL clubs.

Thompson has had a stellar career at St Helens, having made 157 appearances for the red and whites, including scoring 8 tries for them last season.

During his time at St Helens, Thompson has proved to be one of the best props in the competition, including being part of their Championship side in 2014 and then winning the Harry Sunderland Trophy as Man of the Match in the Super League Grand Final victory over Salford last season.

Thompson made his International debut for England in 2018 and then went on to represent Great Britain during their tour of the Southern Hemisphere last year, making his debut against Tonga.

Bulldogs Chief Executive Andrew Hill spoke about the leadership qualities that Thompson would bring to the club :

“Even though Luke is at the start of his career, we have been really impressed by his on-field leadership qualities and his desire to be the best. He is an excellent player who has become a star of the Super League and has shown what he is capable of at International level and we are looking forward to him getting the chance to show everyone in the NRL what he is capable of.

We feel as though we are creating a really strong squad moving forward and to have someone of Luke’s calibre want to be part of that and to buy in to what we are building here is a big vote of confidence in the club and the future.

I am sure that our members and fans are going to love seeing him run out in the blue and white and continue the tradition of English forwards who have prospered in the NRL.”

Bulldogs Chair Lynne Anderson was delighted that Thompson had chosen to come to Belmore :

“When we were re-elected two years ago we promised as a Board that we would work hard to move the club forward and create a squad for the future. The signing of someone like Luke is part of that process as he is both a quality footballer and someone with strong personal values.

As the family club we have always looked to create a culture that players wanted to be a part of and after speaking with Luke and listening to what he is looking to achieve in the game I feel that he will be a great fit for us."

Thompson said that he was excited about getting the opportunity to join the Bulldogs :

“Getting the chance to join the Bulldogs and be a part of a club with so much history and with such passionate fans is very exciting. Having spoken to many people at the club and listened to their plans for the future, I know that they are building for success and I’m looking forward to being part of that.

When you join a club like the Bulldogs you know about the players and the culture that has gone before you and the fact that second best isn’t good enough and that was something that was important to me.

I look forward to joining them for the 2021 season and getting to be a part of a talented squad that is hungry for success and this will now enable me to focus on having a great final season with St Helens.”

LUKE THOMPSON PROFILE

AGE – 24

POSITION - PROP

HEIGHT – 6ft 1in

WEIGHT – 106 KG

ST HELENS

DEBUT – 2013 v London Broncos

SUPER LEAGUE TITLES: 2

MATCHES – 157

TRIES – 25

ENGLAND

MATCHES – 4

GREAT BRITAIN

MATCHES - 2