Recruit watch: Viliame Kikau
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The NRL market has been in full swing for 2023 with several stars switching clubs ahead of the new season.
NRL.com takes a look at the major transfers and how your club will benefit from a star arrival.
Viliame Kikau (Bulldogs)
Age: 27
Position they'll fill: Second row
Contracted until: 2026
What Kikau will bring
Two-time premiership-winning forward Viliame Kikau could be the difference for the Bulldogs in 2023 after the Canterbury club finished a disappointing 12th last season.
Reviving memories of their days as 'The Entertainers', the Bulldogs possessed plenty of punch in their backline in 2022 but the absence of a game-breaking edge forward was a major factor in missing the finals for a sixth straight season.
Powering his way to 38 tries in 123 appearances with Penrith, leaving defenders in his wake as he exploded into holes and proved extremely hard to pull down with his unique running style.
The 27-year-old can also be an intimidating figure in defence but it's his attacking X-factor that will make him an instant cult figure with the Bulldog Army.
Kikau was superhuman against the Storm
Why it’ll work
Kikau’s arrival at Belmore is set to form one of the NRL’s most lethal left edges in 2023.
The star recruit will play outside star five-eighth Matt Burton, who last season formed a dangerous combination with left winger Josh Addo-Carr and the new strike trio is shaping to be a major threat to rival defences.
Burton laid on 14 try assists for the Bulldogs last season as he quickly found his feet after a move from Penrith, where he shared premiership glory with Kikau in 2021.
Also making the move from the premiers is former assistant coach Cameron Ciraldo, who takes the reins of a new-look Bulldogs side on the brink of something special with Kikau, Reed Mahoney and Ryan Sutton all coming on board.
Ciraldo will no doubt be the man to bring out the best in Kikau at his new club, with the star forward recently lauding the new coach as an influential figure in his career.
“He’s played a big part in my career…he’s a good communicator,” he said.
“He’s great at listening and understanding the players he coaches and that was the main thing about his coaching that stood out for me.”
