Shorrocks commits to Wigan

Correspondent

Wigan have confirmed that young halfback Jake Shorrocks has signed a new three-year contract extension with the club.

The 21-year-old has made 12 first team appearances since making his debut against Widnes in June, and should now stay at the club until the end of the 2020 campaign.

Warriors chairman Ian Lenagan believes Shorrocks epitomises what Wigan are about in regard to developing players.

“Jake is a fine young English halfback who is a player for both the future and for now,” he said.

“One of the hottest prospects in Super League, he showed just how good he is by slotting straight into the first team when called upon during the injury crisis last season.

“At Wigan we put a lot of trust in our young players and Jake is yet another product of the outstanding youth development department we have here at the club.

“He has taken his opportunity well, and is a great example to all young rugby league players.”

Wigan head coach Shaun Wane believes Shorrocks offers him further first-team options, given his skills and maturity.

“Jake was very unlucky not to play in the Grand Final at the end of last season, but the way he handled that disappointment has shown the measure of him as a person.

“He is mature for his age and a very good player too.

“We’ll train for some of the pre-season without Tommy Leuluai and George Williams, but that gives us even more time to work with Jake, and he is a player that will only get better and better.

“We are delighted to have agreed this new contract with Jake.”

Shorrocks is keen to get stuck into his first team career with the Warriors.

“I’m really happy to have secured this new contract with Wigan and can’t wait for the season to start now,” he said.

“I loved every minute of playing for the first team last year and I’m hungry for more games over the next three years.

“I really enjoy being part of this team and just want to continue to learn and improve and believe that at Wigan, working alongside the likes of Tommy Leuluai and Sean O’Loughlin and under the coaching of Shaun Wane, that gives me the best opportunity to do that.”