Bulldogs trounce AFL, rugby to sign ‘extraordinary’ young gun Mitchell Woods

Just In> Bulldogs to sign ‘extraordinary’ young gun on a long term deal.

The Canterbury Bulldogs have secured one of the most promising football athletes in the country, out-doing the Sydney Swans and the AFL to sign Mitchell Woods on a long-term deal, reports Nine’s Danny Weidler.

Woods had already agreed to a contract with the Bulldogs for next year but last week inked a multi-year commitment with the club.

Boasting a superb kicking game, Woods, a rising halfback and midfielder, has had three sports vying for his services this year.

The 17-year-old was a member of the Sydney Swans academy but barely played any AFL football this year, having spent most of his time suiting up for the Bulldogs in the Harold Matthews Cup.

Woods was also part of the NSW Waratahs’ underage programs.

Canterbury coach Cameron Ciraldo is an attraction for Woods, while football boss Phil Gould considers him a prospect future Bulldogs teams can build around.

Woods will be a key figure in the Bulldogs’ playmaker academy — a similar program to the one set up by Gould at Penrith which resulted in the development of Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai.

“Mitchell Woods is one of the most extraordinary young talents you can ever imagine,” Gould said, who played a main role in the acquisition process.

“In recent years he has played rugby, AFL and rugby league, all at the highest levels of school sport and elite junior academies in these respective sports, all at the same time.

“There is no doubt he has a future in any one of these sports.”

Dispute being courted by both the NRL and the AFL, the Bulldogs and Swans were civilised and supportive in their discussions around the youngster’s future.

“We went and met with the Sydney Swans development staff to discuss his future. We both agreed he could make it in either code, but the time had come for him to specialise in one game,” Gould said.

“Both the Swans and Bulldogs told Mitchell we would support him no matter which sport he chose as his career, but we both agreed he needed to make that decision now because his training for the respective codes was about to become very specialised and very different.

“Obviously the Bulldogs are grateful Mitchell has chosen to pursue a career in professional rugby league with our club. It’s wonderful for our club, but also great for the game of rugby league. We also know the guys at the Swans will be cheering for him.

“Mitchell was the captain of our Harold Matthews premiership-winning team this season. He was also the player of the year. He’s a hard-working and extremely dedicated young man. It’s exciting to think we will be a part of his development as a professional footballer. We are lucky to have Mitchell in our club.”

Speaking on AFL.com.au’s Gettable podcast in August, Sydney list manager Kinnear Beatson said the Swans had limited capacities to attract underage athletes because of the sport’s differing recruitment systems and draft.

“Mitch has a contract in front of him from a rugby league team. For Mitch, he can just accept the contract and walk to that rugby league team. [There is] no draft [in the NRL], he doesn’t have to worry about whether we match the bid or whatever,” he said.

“It [the challenge to compete with the NRL] is real in the New South Wales market. We missed a boy at the start of this year in Navren Willett who went to the West Tigers. We thought he had the potential to play a key position. He walked straight into the rugby club, no complications, didn’t have to go through a draft.”