WARRINGTON Wolves have signed scrum-half Josh Drinkwater from Catalans Dragons to fill their vacant number seven shirt.
Drinkwater, 30, has joined on a two-year deal and follows former team-mates Gil Dudson and Sam Kasiano to the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
He said: “I’m very excited about the move.
“I’ve played against Warrington many times and it’s always been a club that I’ve admired from afar. When the opportunity came up it was a very easy decision to make. I’ve enjoyed my time in France but I’m really looking forward to getting over now and embracing the English culture again.
“I’m excited to be part of the spine in this team. George [Williams] is a world class player. Also players like Daryl Clark and Matt Dufty as well. They’re all great players and I’m really looking forward to developing combinations with them. It’ll take a little bit of time to gel and people will need to understand that but when it does hopefully we can have some success.
“When you play for a club like Warrington the ambition has to be trophies. The Club wants to win Super League as do I. It’s going to be a process, there’s a pre-season ahead to get ourselves ready. With the squad we’ve got here, if we can gel and come together, I don’t see why we can’t be challenging for that.”
The Australian started his career with St George-Illawarra Dragons in the NRL but all but five of his first grade career appearances have been in the UK.
He first came to Super League with London Broncos in 2014, and later had spells with Leigh and Hull KR.
Drinkwater helped Catalans to beat Warrington in the 2018 Challenge Cup final, and was top of the Super League try assist charts last season.
Wolves Head Coach Daryl Powell added: “I’m delighted that Josh has agreed to join us as we move forward into next season.
“He is a quality half-back who can organise a team superbly. His combination with George Williams is a well-balanced one that I am confident will contribute massively to what we aim to achieve in 2023.”
