Andrew Voss has questioned whether the Cronulla Sharks have made a mistake with Nicho Hynes and Daniel Atkinson after the latter reportedly agreed to a three-year deal with St George Illawarra. In what would be a crushing blow for his former NRL team, Dragons coach Shane Flanagan has reportedly convinced the 23-year-old Atkinson to switch clubs. According to News Corp, Atkinson has agreed to a three-year deal worth $500,000 per season to join the Dragons from 2026. Due to the NRL's new 'cooling off' rule, the Sharks would have 10 days to try and convince Atkinson to change his mind. However the lure of a starting spot in the halves at the Dragons appears to be too good to refuse. Atkinson emerged as a genuine first-grade talent in 2024, but is stuck behind Hynes and Braydon Trindall at Cronulla. With Hynes on a long-term deal worth $1 million per season and Trindall recently re-signing, the writing is on the wall that Atkinson is the odd man out. The Sharks rate Atkinson highly and there was even talk of moving Hynes to fullback to accommodate the 23-year-old in the halves. But it looks as though the Dragons have scored a massive coup and snared one of the best young emerging halves in the comp. With Kyle Flanagan off contract at the end of 2025, Atkinson will likely partner Lachlan Ilias in the halves for the Red V. Ilias joined the Dragons this off-season after Ben Hunt's departure to the Broncos, and will partner Kyle Flanagan in the 6 and 7 in 2025. But a partnership between Ilias and Atkinson would seemingly be one of the best young halves combos in the NRL. Tellingly, the Sharks are refusing to entertain the prospect of releasing Atkinson early to join the Dragons in 2025. "They feel like they can win a premiership with him in 2025 and he's a key part of that," journalist Michael Carayannis said on SEN radio on Thursday. "Don't forget this time last year they released Matt Moylan to give Atkinson the role of the premier back-up half."
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