Graham officially a Dog from 2012

After a mountain of speculation over the last few months, the Bulldogs have finally got their man, with James Graham signing a 3-year deal with the Bulldogs a short time ago.

Graham, 25, played with St Helens for 9 years, making his debut as a 16 year old, with many believing that he has the potential to be a bigger and better player than current English prop Sam Burgess.

Whilst it was a tough decision for Graham to leave the ESL and England, he said that the prospect of playing in the NRL was simply too good to refuse.

“The decision to leave St Helens has been by far the biggest decision of my Rugby League career,” Graham says.

“I’ve been on the books with Saints since I was 11 years old and I grew up supporting the Club. I love the place and I never wanted to play against them, and as such I didn’t consider any other Super League options.

“Testing myself in the NRL is something I’ve always wanted to do, and the Bulldogs just seemed right from day one. From meeting with Todd Greenberg and Kevin Moore and also Peter Mulholland, I got a feeling that the Bulldogs are a Club heading in the right direction.

“They made it clear to me that they saw me as a big part of the future of the Club and I’m looking forward, after a successful finish to my time at Saints, to linking with the Club at the end of the year.”

For Dogs coach Kevin Moore, he sees the signing of Graham as a valuable acquisition for his side.

“James is a player of the highest quality and we’re very much looking forward to having him on board from next season onwards,” Moore says.

“He’s been rated among the best front rowers in the world for a number years now and it’s always exciting to add international quality to your forward pack. Being the current captain of Great Britain his leadership qualities are obvious and he will be a great addition to our Club and our team.

“I think he’s going to make a big impression across the NRL.”

Bulldogs CEO Todd Greenberg shared the same views as the Dogs coach on Graham.

“One of the things that struck me about James is his genuineness,” Greenberg said. “He was up front about wanting to test himself in the NRL and was also up front about the qualities he wanted in the Club he was going to join.

“He’s obviously come through a very close-knit environment at St Helens, who have fostered him from a very young age and have done a fantastic job with him both on and off the field.

“There were a number of NRL Clubs in the hunt for James and we take it as a compliment that such a fine young man sees the Bulldogs as having the right type of environment to further himself in football and life.”