Nicholls extends until 2025

Cult hero front rower Mark Nicholls will be a Dolphin in season 2025.

The Dolphins have enacted a contract option on the workhorse prop to secure his services for next year.

It is a just reward for the 34-year-old, who scored in the Dolphins’ historic first ever win in their debut match last year.

‘The Goat’, as Nicholls is affectionately known, has been a solid contributor in the Dolphins’ forward pack since Wayne Bennett made him a key signing for the club’s first season.

He will now be part of incoming coach Kristian Woolf’s first year as head coach.

Dolphins’ chief executive Terry Reader said Nicholls’ role at the club, both on the field and as a mentor to other players, was underrated.

“Mark Nicholls has been great for the Dolphins,” said Reader.

“’The Goat’ is loved by the fans and it is fair to say no-one gets a louder cheer than when he scores a try.

Terry Reader Dolphins CEO

“You only had to see the reaction from coach Wayne Bennett and his teammates when he scored that long-range try against the Sea Eagles last week.

“He is a very popular player around the club, and the work he does and the knowledge he imparts in the dressing room to our younger players is as important as what he does on the field.”

Nicholls has now played 30 matches for the Dolphins in a career that has spanned 158 games including stints with original club the Raiders, the Storm and the Rabbitohs.

Nicholls was a member of the wider Storm squad that won the 2017 NRL and played for the Rabbitohs in the 2021 NRL Grand Final loss to Penrith.