Morris to play tough for Sharks until exit

A relieved Josh Morris insists he’ll still give his all to Cronulla for the opening two NRL rounds before being released to the Sydney Roosters.

Morris was on Wednesday finally granted permission to join his twin brother Brett at the Roosters, after months of negotiations.

But it will come on rare terms.

Morris will line up for Cronulla against South Sydney on Saturday and Melbourne in round two before packing his bags for Bondi the day after.

It will allow the former representative veteran to fill the void left by the departure of Latrell Mitchell at centre for the Roosters and ease Cronulla’s salary cap concerns.

The Sharks will also be paid a transfer fee by the defending premiers, and be able to negotiate with Roosters forward Poasa Faamausili

“It’s a bit of relief,” Morris admitted.

“Obviously there has been a bit of stuff come out in the past month or so. It’s good to have an end date.

“I am here for two weeks and I am going to give the best account of myself as possible.

“I want to set them up for a good start to the season and if I am doing my job well hopefully we can get a couple of wins.”

Morris had been agitating for a release for some time, but the Sharks had been reluctant to let him go.

Of most concern is the fitness of their backline, with Josh Dugan’s knee an ongoing issue and Matt Moylan now battling a calf problem.

Morris admitted he had been unhappy when Cronulla signed young centre Jesse Ramien from Newcastle last year.

It threatened to squeeze the veteran out of the centres and left him uncertain of his spot, with Bronson Xerri also a star of the future.

“As a centre you’re unhappy that someone else has been bought in your position,” Morris said.

“But Bomber (coach John Morris) has got a job to do and he’s got to plan for the future and I understand that as well.

“Football is a business and you see that happen. I just had to keep moving on with it and be professional.”

The 33-year-old described the chance to finish his career with his brother as something they’d “dreamt about as kids”.

Roosters coach Trent Robinson also hailed the move for his club.

“We’re getting another Morris that we know quite well. We feel like we know him quite well,” Robinson said.

“It’s a positional need for us and we’re looking forward for that taking place when it gets finalised.”

Meanwhile, Robinson also downplayed any concerns over Boyd Cordner’s fitness after he rested him for the opening round clash with the Panthers on Saturday.

“It’s the same as the World Club challenge,” Robinson explained.

“We’re going to take that extra bit of time to get his body fully prepared for an NRL and representative season.”

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