Manly’s heart-and-soul vice-captain Jake Trbojevic will play on at the NRL club in 2027 after triggering his contract option.
Speculation had swirled over the eldest of the Trbojevic brothers’ future after a series of concussions last season, and a downturn in form to begin the year.
The club initially set round 10 as a deadline for Trbojevic to take up his contract option for a one-year extension, before granting him more time to come to a decision.
Trbojevic celebrated his 250th game for Manly against Brisbane in round 10 and has enjoyed a much more productive two months since Kieran Foran became interim coach.
The 32-year-old middle forward is currently captaining the Sea Eagles in the absence of injured brother Tom.
On Wednesday afternoon, the fourth-placed Sea Eagles confirmed Trbojevic had agreed to play into a 15th season with the club next year.
If he plays every regular-season game until the end of 2027, Trbojevic will become the third most-capped Manly player of all time behind only Daly Cherry-Evans and Cliff Lyons.
“I’m loving my footy, and I love this club,” Trbojevic said in a statement.
“The past few weeks have been really enjoyable and our turnaround in form has been great for the whole club.
“I love playing under ‘Foz’ and with this amazing group of players. I’m really happy to confirm that I’m locked in for next year.”
The Sea Eagles have won six of seven games since Foran replaced Anthony Seibold after only three games this year and host 16th-placed Gold Coast on Saturday.
Foran had been hopeful Trbojevic would trigger his option, calling him a “once in a lifetime defender” ahead of his recent 250-game milestone.
“Jake is everything that is good about this club, he is Manly through and through,” Foran said after news of his contract extension.
