The Manly Sea Eagles admit the departure of Addin Fonua-Blake leaves a massive hole in their forward pack.
The prop yesterday confirmed he's signed with the Warriors for the 2021 season, in a major coup for the New Zealand club.
His soon to be former teammates say Fonua-Blake's departure leaves big shoes to fill.
"He's probably one of the best front rowers in the comp at the moment, so losing him is a massive loss," said Jack Gosiewski.
Manly centre Brad Parker echoed his teammate's sentiments.
"We're losing a lot of forwards at the end of this year so I think it's up to the club to try and find some quality players and blokes who can really help our forwards out."
Fonua-Blake told Manly officials he and his young family wanted to move out of Sydney last week despite having two years left on his contract with them.
That, along with the Warriors' salary cap wiggle room, allowed them to fit him in their roster.
The Tonga international leads all NRL front-rowers for metres-per-run with more than 10 and has a tackle efficiency rating of 93.9 per cent.
It's another big addition for the Warriors front row, with fellow Tongan Ben Murdoch-Masila also joining the Kiwi NRL club next season from the UK and young talent Jamayne Taunoa-Brown re-signing until 2022.
SHARE ME