Storm star Cronk to make Sydney move

Melbourne star Cooper Cronk is to leave the NRL club at the end of the season and is eyeing a move to Sydney to be with his fiancee.

Cooper Cronk of the Melbourne Storm

Melbourne star Cooper Cronk has announced he will leave the NRL club at the end of the season. (AAP)

Test halfback Cooper Cronk has set the scene for a bidding war among Sydney NRL clubs for his signature after announcing he'll leave Melbourne at the end of the season.

The two-time Dally M Medal winner said family reasons were behind the decision to leave the Storm after 14 seasons and he indicated he will move to Sydney to be with his fiancee, television presenter Tara Rushton.

"This will be my last season in Melbourne," Cronk told reporters on Tuesday.

"If it was a football decision, I'd be staying here for a long period of time.

"But for me to finish up here at Melbourne Storm this year is a personal (decision).

"Tara, my fiancee, is based in Sydney, and there's a few things in life that are more important than football, like family, getting married and a future.

"I've been pretty selfish in my approach to my football career and I think it's time I put someone else and something else first."

Cronk said he does not know where his playing career after the Storm lies but he feels ready to play for at least another two years.

The Queensland and Australian representative, who's played 306 games for the Storm, is contracted to the club until the end of the season but had an option to play in 2018, which he will decline.

He won the premiership with the Storm in 2012 and played in two more grand final winning sides that had their titles stripped for salary cap breaches..


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Source: AAP



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