‘Prince of Belmore’ Josh Reynolds signs on as Bulldog for the last time and not even a North Sydney Bears win can spoil the party for ‘Grub’
- Josh Reynolds has played his last professional rugby league match
- The 34-year-old retired, opening up a place in the Bulldogs NRL Top 30 squad
- He played in front of an adoring crowd in Belmore for the last time
- Reynolds debuted with Bulldogs in 2011, leaves great club
Josh Reynolds’ decorated rugby league career has officially come to an end, with the North Sydney Bears playing the role of killjoy.
Reynolds, 34, played for his beloved Canterbury Bulldogs for the last time at reserve grade on Saturday afternoon, after announcing this week that the NSW Cup clash would be his swan song.
In front of a healthy crowd at Belmore Sports Stadium, the man affectionately known as ‘Grub’ failed to inspire his team to victory, but in the end the result didn’t matter.
The fifth eighth made his NRL debut for the Bulldogs in 2011 and came into play in the 2012 and 2014 grand finals.
He also appeared in halves in 2014 alongside Trent Hodkinson for all three games of the Origin series for NSW, where the Blues finally ended Queensland’s eight-year winning streak.
Josh Reynolds’ rugby league career has officially come to an end, and where it all began, at the Belmore Sports Ground
Reynolds, 34, is a great Bulldogs fan favorite and is admired by many for his tenacity.
After his first ‘farewell’ from the club in 2017, Reynolds joined the Wests Tigers on a multi-year deal, but form and injuries ensured he was sorry.
The center then played for Hull FC in the English Super League, before signing a “train and test” contract for the Bulldogs in the off-season, where he was paid $1000 a week.
Reynolds won a lot of fans after managing to play seven NRL matches this season, but he hasn’t lined up in the first grade since the round 11 loss to the Warriors.
A fan favourite, Reynolds this week selflessly gave up his place in the NRL’s top 30 so the club could accommodate former Titans running back Toby Sexton in its first grade squad.
‘The Prince of Belmore’ had a hero’s welcome on Saturday, with his mother Nicole and fiancee Ciarne Denham offering last-minute well wishes.
Former teammates like James Graham, Frank Pritchard, Greg Eastwood and Moses Mbye were also spotted at Reynolds’ final match.
An honor guard was held for Josh Reynolds as the Bulldogs veteran played his final professional rugby league game on Saturday.
Fans wearing Josh Reynolds masks at the club favorite’s swansong on Saturday in Belmore
Reynolds declared this week that he was happy with his achievements in rugby league and was elated to end a ‘fairy tale’ at the Belmore Sports Ground.
“I know it’s a cliché, but this place has the best memories I’ve had in my entire career,” he said.
My teammates, my family, the fans, they hated me, they loved me, a little bit of everything.
“I played my grand final there when I was seven years old, now being able to play my last game here in a Bulldogs jersey is very special.”
