The 21-year-old slotted straight into the Green Machine’s backline, replacing fellow England international Morgan Smithies at loose-forward with the latter dropping to the bench.
Nicholson scored two tries and was a massive thorn in the Brisbane side all evening, but it’s been a meteoric rise for the 21-year-old.
In June 2022, Nicholson made the move from Wigan Warriors to Warrington, etching a three-year deal before going on to play 46 times for the Wire during a three-year period.
Now The Mole at the Wide World of Sports has revealed that Warrington let Nicholson go due to a clause in the latter’s contract.
The Mole claims that the Wolves made the 21-year-old a “lucrative offer” to tempt him from Wigan, but that Nicholson only agreed if the contract included a buy-out clause.
That clause was activated by Nicholson after three years at the Cheshire club, with the back-rower landing in the Australian capital ready to play in Australia’s most prized competition.