Connor Muhleisen will make his NRL debut off the bench for the St George Illawarra Dragons when they take on Manly Sea Eagles at WIN Stadium on Saturday night.
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The 22-year-old is the only change from the Dragons side which had a last-start win over the Wests Tigers.
Mulheisen takes the place of Moses Mbye, who was granted a release by the club to pursue an opportunity overseas.
The young hooker captained the Illawarra Steelers' SG ball side in parts throughout their successful 2019 campaign.
Having won their 'spoon-bowl' against the Tigers last week, St George Illawarra can now play the role of spoiler by beating the finals-chasing Many Sea Eagles.
Victory for the Red V in Wollongong will also spoil Daly Cherry-Evans' 300th game for a Manly side which survived a scare in Cronulla on Sunday to stay within reach of the top eight.
The Sea Eagles have to keep winning, particularly against sides like the Dragons who are lower than them on the ladder, if they want to reach the finals this year.
For the Sea Eagles key forwards Taniela Paseka (knee) and Josh Aloiai (shoulder) miss so Matt Lodge and Toafofoa Sipley will start the game and Ethan Bullemor joins the bench.
Jake Trbojevic suffered a head knock against the Sharks but passed a HIA late and is ready to go in captain Cherry-Evans' 300th game
St George Illawarra players will be keen to finish the season off strongly and impress incoming 2024 coach Shane Flanagan, who has allowed injured playmaker Jayden Sullivan to test the market, and earlier this week confirmed Mbye will depart the club for the English Super League.
This will be the first time this year that the Dragons and Sea Eagles meet, with their only meeting last year ending in a 20-6 win to St George Illawarra a year ago.
Saturday's match at WIN Stadium starts at 5.30pm.
Dragons team:
- Tyrell Sloan
- Mathew Feagai
- Moses Suli
- Zac Lomax
- Mikaele Ravalawa
- Talatau Amone
- Ben Hunt
- Francis Molo
- Jacob Liddle
- Blake Lawrie
- Billy Burns
- Dan Russell
- Jack de Belin
- Connor Mulheisen
- Michael Molo
- Toby Couchman
- Jack Bird
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Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
