As the Canterbury Bulldogs enter a critical off-season period that will force the club’s leadership to make several high-stakes decisions about player contracts, 33-year-old utility Kurt Mann has left no ambiguity about his next goal: he wants to extend his tenure at the Belmore-based club beyond the 2026 NRL season. A well-traveled veteran closing out a 13-year top-flight career that has included stints at the Melbourne Storm, St George Illawarra Dragons, and Newcastle Knights before joining the Bulldogs, Mann has established a reputation as one of the league’s most versatile and reliable role players — a trait that has already drawn quiet interest from other Sydney-based clubs should a new deal with the Bulldogs not come to fruition. A move to a Western Australian franchise has been ruled out as a potential option for the experienced playmaker. Mann’s current contract, a one-year extension signed in March 2025, is set to expire at the end of the upcoming season, leaving his playing future after that point still unconfirmed. In a recent press interview, the veteran opened up about his approach to contract talks and his desire to remain in blue and white. “I haven’t really looked into it too much,” Mann said. “I’m 33 this year, so I’m sort of just playing it by ear and really focusing on how I’m playing at the moment. The rest of that will take care of itself. I’d love to stay at the Dogs, or if that doesn’t eventuate then I don’t know how many more years I’ve got left in me at the moment. I’m really enjoying playing footy at the moment and I’m still loving it. I’m still competing, so I’m still really enjoying it.” Mann’s on-field form this season has backed up his claim that he still has plenty to offer at the top level, with a recent standout play against the Parramatta Eels — where he outran young Eels fullback Joash Papalii to secure a kick — serving as proof he can still match the pace of the league’s younger generation. Now, Mann and the Bulldogs are looking to rebound from an unexpected upset loss to the Eels this weekend, when they face off against an injury-depleted Brisbane Broncos squad on Friday night. Beyond his club commitments, Mann is also quietly gunning for a second call-up to Queensland’s State of Origin side, after a dream debut run in 2024 helped the Maroons pull off a stunning series comeback from a 1-0 deficit to claim the Origin shield. Mann came off the interchange bench in games two and three of last year’s series, and the introduction of new expanded six-man benches for 2025 makes his versatility as a utility an even more ideal fit for the Maroons’ game plan. He already met with Queensland head coach Billy Slater earlier this year at a Maroons training camp, and remains a leading contender to retain his spot in the squad when selections are announced. “He keeps his cards pretty close to his chest until it gets pretty close to selection time, so you never hear too much from him until then,” Mann said of Slater. “Any time you get the chance to pull on the Maroons jersey, you grab it with both hands. It’s something you dream of as a little kid and you get to represent your family, your community where you’re from, and everyone in Queensland. It’s a lifetime memory I’ll have now. I thought all that sort of stuff was past me at my age, and to get the call-up was definitely a dream come true.”
‘I don’t know how many more years I’ve got’: Kurt Mann keen to sign new Bulldogs deal
