Bronx Goodwin and Mitch Rein have extended their contracts with St George Illawarra until the end of 2013.The Mercury can reveal the duo has recently agreed to terms with the Dragons, with the club to announce the signings within the next fortnight.The double coup also softened the blow left by the failed bid to lure Wes Naiqama back to the club next year, with the Knights speedster yesterday signing a three-year contract to play under Wayne Bennett in Newcastle.
Full coverage of the DragonsRein has been a revelation for the red and whites since his NRL debut in round one, making the most of the opportunity presented by the World Club Challenge injury to Cameron King.It is believed incoming coach Steve Price sees King and Rein, who he coached as teenagers in the Toyota Cup three years ago, as long-term replacements for Dean Young and Nathan Fien.The signing of Goodwin, who is expected to return from injury in four weeks, bolsters the club's options to replace Newcastle-bound Darius Boyd at fullback.Goodwin, who was in the process of renegotiating a contract extension before he suffered a knee injury in round nine, was given a guarantee the setback wouldn't rob him of a contract for next season."As soon as I did the injury, the first thing that came to my mind was the contract," Goodwin said."But I took Pricey on his word and I knew the club wasn't going to renege."Despite his desire to remain at the Dragons, Goodwin has been holding off on a decision until Boyd announced his future.But with the Queensland and Australian representative leaving, Goodwin said it was an easy decision."It's part of the reason why I stayed," Goodwin said."Darbs [Boyd] leaving opens the door for me or Kyle [Stanley], or whoever [to play fullback]."Also at the club, prop David Gower is off contract at season's end and his manager Sam Ayoub has decided to wait until after the Origin period to negotiate a potential contract extension with the red and whites.The Dragons have also tabled an offer to Adam Cuthbertson, but the back-rower is weighing up his options.Michael Greenfield has activated an option in his contract to extend his time at St George Illawarra until the end of next season.
