{"id":782649,"date":"2026-07-06T12:56:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T12:56:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782649\/"},"modified":"2026-07-06T12:56:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T12:56:11","slug":"nrl-2026-dylan-walker-to-leave-the-eels-warriors-announce-two-key-signings-te-maire-martin-and-dallin-watene-zelezniak-sign-extensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782649\/","title":{"rendered":"NRL 2026: Dylan Walker to leave the Eels, Warriors announce two key signings, Te Maire Martin and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak sign extensions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Parramatta fans won\u2019t have much longer to appreciate plays like Dylan Walker\u2019s ridiculous flick pass on the weekend<\/a> with confirmation the star utility will leave the club at the end of this year.<\/p>\n

Watch every game of every round of the Premiership Season LIVE with no ad-breaks during play on FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Walker has been one of the Eels\u2019 rare shining lights in another disappointing season and was open to extending his stay at Parramatta for another year but was unable to get a new deal.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Instead, he will join former Eels coach Brad Arthur overseas after signing a three-year deal with Leeds Rhinos.<\/p>\n

Speaking to AAP<\/a> after Parramatta\u2019s win over Manly on Sunday, Walker admitted it was \u201cdisappointing\u201d not to get a new deal done with the Eels.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s disappointing to not get one here, but I\u2019ve got to make a grown-up decision and they (the Eels) have got to make a decision, it\u2019s a business,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had conversations (with Perth), but they weren\u2019t keen, and a lot of people weren\u2019t keen, to be fair.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a young man\u2019s game now. I think everyone\u2019s waiting for the next best young thing, which I get, and you get a few no\u2019s and you know you\u2019re meant to be where you\u2019re meant to be and I\u2019m excited.\u201d <\/p>\n

Walker has added an extra element to Parramatta\u2019s attack as a ball-playing option through the middle, with his 226 general play passes easily outranking the next closest forward in Isaah Yeo (166). <\/p>\n

He is also incredibly versatile and has the kind of experience, both in club land and in two State of Origin appearances for the Blues, which will make him a valuable addition at Leeds.<\/p>\n

\u201cDylan is a great professional and will be a good addition to our current group,\u201d Arthur said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are obviously losing some experience from our pack next season with Cameron, Mik and James moving on but I am pleased we have been able to add Dylan to our group as well as Morgan Gannon returning to the club too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dylan Walker is leaving the Eels. (Photo by Matt King\/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

WARRIORS ANNOUNCE TWO KEY EXTENSIONS<\/p>\n

Earlier, the Warriors announced a double signing boost, with five-eighth Te Maire Martin and cult hero Dallin Watene-Zelezniak extending their stay across the ditch.<\/p>\n

Martin is staying put for another year until the end of the 2027 season, while Watene-Zelezniak will remain at the Warriors through to at least the 2028 campaign. <\/p>\n

Martin has battled injuries throughout his career and had his start to the 2026 disrupted by a broken leg but has made the most of his opportunity since filling in for Tanah Boyd.<\/p>\n

Boyd, of course, will return from his torn ACL next year to partner Chanel Harris-Tavita, but even if he is no longer in the starting side Martin will have a key role to play as the club\u2019s primary back-up half with Luke Metcalf and Luke Hanson out of the picture.<\/p>\n

Metcalf is making a high-profile move to the Dragons while the Titans confirmed earlier this month that they have snapped up young Hanson on a two-year deal from next season.<\/p>\n

Martin, like Harris-Tavita, is one of the better defensive halves in the competition and will be a perfect utility for coach Andrew Webster on the bench.<\/p>\n

MORE NRL NEWS<\/p>\n

TEAM TIPS: Tigers, Bunnies shake ups; luckless Bulldogs star\u2019s uncertain recovery<\/a><\/p>\n

TALKING PTS: Ivan\u2019s \u2018can of worms\u2019 with shock move; embarrassing act exposes problem<\/a><\/p>\n

Koroisau out for a month with pec injury | 00:30<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got so much confidence in and respect for Te Maire. He\u2019s such a team-first player,\u201d Webster said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe had a late start to the season after breaking his leg but when we lost Tanah he stepped in seamlessly at halfback. No matter what is asked of him he\u2019s always happy to help. He\u2019s a true footy player just loves the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, Watene-Zelezniak remains locked into one of the starting wing spots for the Warriors having joined the club in 2021 and will remain a key leader in a squad that is pushing for a top-two finish this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cDallin is a rugby league identity and a Warriors identity,\u201d Webster said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re so grateful to have him here \u2026 the person he is, most importantly a family man, but also what he brings on the weekends to the team with his energy and his fearlessness.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Parramatta fans won\u2019t have much longer to appreciate plays like Dylan Walker\u2019s ridiculous flick pass on the weekend…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":782650,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,85,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-782649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-sports","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782649","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=782649"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782649\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/782650"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=782649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=782649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=782649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}