{"id":344669,"date":"2025-12-13T04:57:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-13T04:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/344669\/"},"modified":"2025-12-13T04:57:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-13T04:57:10","slug":"matt-lodge-opens-up-on-why-he-left-manly-for-cowboys-nrl-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/344669\/","title":{"rendered":"Matt Lodge opens up on why he left Manly for Cowboys – NRL News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many questioned the North Queensland Cowboys<\/a> recruiting of Matthew Lodge<\/a>, however he insists he’s \u201cno spent force\u201d as he prepares for the next chapter of his turbulent NRL<\/a> journey.<\/p>\n

Despite many believing his NRL<\/a> career was dwindling to a halt, Lodge admitted he wants to turn the Cowboys into a premiership threat after his abrupt departure from the Manly Sea Eagles<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In his first interview since signing a one-year deal with the Cowboys, Lodge revealed it was his decision to leave the Sea Eagles, saying a fresh start in the tropics would push him outside his comfort zone.<\/p>\n

The 30-year-old, now joining his seventh NRL<\/a> club, also addressed long-running perceptions around his reputation, admitting his infamous 2015 New York incident has \u201cfollowed me everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople call it a lifeline, but I was always alive,\u201d Lodge told the Daily Telegraph.<\/p>\n

Lodge confirmed he recently parted ways with long-time manager Isaac Moses before linking with agent Sam Ayoub, who manages Cowboys legend Johnathan Thurston<\/a> and helped broker the Townsville move.<\/p>\n

\"NRLSYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – SEPTEMBER 21: Matthew Lodge of the Sea Eagles looks on during the NRL Semi Final match between Sydney Roosters and Manly Sea Eagles at Allianz Stadium on September 21, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Jason McCawley\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Parting with Manly wasn’t easy for the prop, who said the club was five minutes from his family home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a top 30 deal at Manly\u2026 I chose the Cowboys because I still care about and love my footy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew deep down, moving away from my comfort zone and making some sacrifices, would be the best thing for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite interest from Super League<\/a> clubs, Lodge said North Queensland presented the biggest challenge \u2014 and the biggest reward.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Cowboys was definitely the hardest move, logistically, but something about it felt right,\u201d he said of the move.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir squad excites me, and I thought it would help my footy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lodge, who enjoyed some of his best football during his stint with the Broncos, said he prepared for the transition by embracing a back-to-basics mindset.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve prepared like a park footy player, but played in the hardest competition in the world for a couple of years now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Now in Townsville, Lodge wants to form a damaging partnership with Jason Taumalolo<\/a> and help push the Cowboys back into finals contention.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought I owed it to myself to get in the best shape I can and see what I can do at the Cowboys,\u201d Lodge said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m excited.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Many questioned the North Queensland Cowboys recruiting of Matthew Lodge, however he insists he’s \u201cno spent force\u201d as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":313149,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-344669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344669","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=344669"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344669\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/313149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=344669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=344669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=344669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}