"Lots of people in Australia talk about the passion of English crowds, the noise and atmosphere at rugby league games, hopefully I can add something to the team as we make a charge towards the title. "My first overseas trip was to England in 2006 with the Australian Schoolboys and I loved it. Meeting all of the Wolves' fans is going to be a lot of fun. I can't wait to get started." Parramatta confirmed Sandow's departure with a two-paragraph statement thanking him for his time at the club and wishing him the best. Despite the unhappy ending to Sandow's time at Parramatta, Smith said he had a lot to offer and was grateful for the opportunity to signing a player of his ability. "He's a very exciting prospect," Smith said. "He is playing at the top of his game in the NRL, picking up man of the match performances.

"Getting the chance to work alongside somebody as exciting as him is an opportunity that doesn't arise too often. I think he fits our mix. "He is a player who plays off instinct and reacts to what the opposition does. He's got some spontaneity about the way he plays that's very much similar to my philosophies in terms of attacking prowess. "He has got a super kicking game, which at times has probably been an issue for us, so it's an opportunity to strengthen that as well. He's a very accomplished goal kicker as well as a general field kicker. We feel that he'll add a lot, to a lot of areas within our game. He's the right person at the right time." Getting the chance to work alongside somebody as exciting as him is an opportunity that doesn't arise too often Warrington coach Tony Smith Sandow is serving a two-match ban for a shoulder charge on Canterbury fullback Brett Morris in Friday night's 28-4 loss at ANZ Stadium, but he is expected to be available for Warrington's opening match of the new Super 8s series, in which the top eight Super League teams play each other once ahead of the finals.

Wolves play Castleford this weekend in the final round of the 12-team Super League competition, and also have a Challenge Cup semi-final against Hull KR that will count towards Sandow's suspension. The deal ends a roller-coaster four-year stint for Sandow at Parramatta, during which he won the club's 2014 player of the year award but also spent time playing for NSW Cup feeder team Wentworthville in each of those seasons. Despite being dropped to Wentworthville for the round 10 match against the Warriors, Sandow was seventh in Dally M voting at the midway point of the season and his 15 try assists rank second only to North Queensland star Johnathan Thurston. But he fell out with coach Brad Arthur after criticising the Eels style of play just days after they gave up a 30-6 lead over the Cowboys to lose 36-30 at Pirtek Stadium. Arthur told Sandow he was free to leave immediately but, after last week seeking a release to join Warrington, he was refused permission to go.

After a poor performance against Canterbury, the Eels offered him $50,000 to forgo the remainder of his contract money for this season and accept a release from the club. With the signing of Manly five-eighth Kieran Foran on a $4.8 million, four-year contract, Sandow's future at Parramatta was unlikely to have extended beyond this season as the club's salary cap woes left them unable to offer him a deal comparable to the one he left South Sydney for in 2012. Sandow has also been in dispute with Parramatta over a third-party deal worth up to $200,000 he claims not to have been paid and Fairfax Media earlier this week reported that the 2008 Dally M rookie of the year had been prepared to stand his ground and play NSW Cup for the rest of the season if necessary to ensure he was paid in full. It is unclear if the terms of the release have changed but Sandow has now played his last game for Parramatta and he is now in the process of obtaining a work visa to begin playing for Warrington as soon as possible. Sandow is expected to partner Catalans-bound Richie Myler in the halves for the remainder of the season and next year will play alongside Newcastle captain Kurt Gidley, who has also signed with the Tony Smith-coached club.

St George Illawarra centre Charly Runciman (Widnes) and Canberra winger Bill Tupou (Wakefield) have also gained releases to join English clubs ahead of the July 25 Super League transfer deadline and it understood Salford are also in the market for NRL talent. Salford, Widnes and Wakefield are at the bottom of the Super League ladder and are set to play in the Middle 8s competition, which will involve the bottom four Super League clubs and the top four Championship clubs, which include the ambitious Leigh and Bradford. With the top three teams in that competition set to play in Super League next year with the winner of a match between the fourth and fifth teams, the clubs are all desperate to bolster their teams to ensure they either survive or gain promotion to the top tier.