Former Raiders winger Bailey Simonsson has revealed what prompted his move to Parramatta.

Simonsson’s switch to the Eels depended on Canberra and Canterbury to come to an agreement, allowing Nick Cotric to return to the Raiders.

Simonsson opened up to The Daily Telegraph regarding competition for spots in Parramatta’s back line.

“Having a few chats with Brad I thought it would be a good fit and I was keen on it,” Simonsson said.

“There was no guarantee of a spot but he spoke about the different things he saw in my game and what I can improve to become the best player I can be.

“Parramatta play an attacking brand of footy and move the ball well. It was a system I thought I could flourish in.”

Simonsson will be competing against New Zealand born Haze Dunster for a spot on the wings alongside club favourite Maika Sivo. However Dunster won’t be the only player standing in the way of a spot on the wing as 19-year-old Will Penisini could also shift further out past the centres.

Overall the 23-year-old is extremely happy with his recent move back to Sydney so he can be closer to partner and family.

“The move has been on the cards for a little while,” Simonsson said.

“A few weeks now it’s been spoken about between the clubs but it got more serious recently.

“I’d started pre-season with the Raiders and trained for about three weeks. It wasn’t distracting. In the back of my head I knew that there was potential to move.

“Once the ball got rolling and I was happy with the move and the clubs were happy, it happened quickly.

“I was glad I could get here before Christmas.”

WAYDE EGAN COMMITTED TO WARRIORS FUTURE

Wayde Egan’s decision to re-sign with the Warriors until 2024 was an easy choice for the 24-year-old to make.

Egan’s chances of claiming the starting nine jersey at the Warriors is fairly likely and believes that he’ll be able to have a positive contribution to the Warriors over the upcoming seasons.

“I really love the club, and I think we can go further this year than we did last year obviously.

“But the future of this club is looking very promising, so yeah it was sort of a no-brainer

when they approached me.”

Joining the Warriors in 2020 after a two year stint in Penrith, Egan’s only cemented a starting spot with the Warriors during the 2021 season and is eager contribute to future success at the Warriors especially with their current crop of young talent.

“Last year Browny (Warriors coach Nathan Brown) sort of came to me and said that he wanted me to be the 80 minutes or starting hooker,” Egan explained.

“That sort of progressed my game, and I’ve still got more learning to do but I hope that improves in the next couple of years.

“The coaching staff at the Warriors have been really good, I’ve sort of listened to them and Browny knows his stuff.

“They’ve got a lot of wisdom in the game … hopefully we sort of kick on even further this season.”

Egan’s intending on having a major impact with the Warriors in 2022 with Nathan Brown’s side finishing in 12th place in 2021.