BARROW Island product Ellis Gillam has joined Whitehaven following his release by Super League Warrington Wolves.

The second-row forward, who turned 20 earlier this month, will be part of the Haven side looking to go one better than this year and secure promotion from League One in 2018.

Gillam – part of the all-conquering Dowdales School team which won three national schools titles – has signed a one-year deal at the Recreation Ground.

He was released by Warrington following the end of an Academy season in which he played 18 games and scored eight tries as skipper. He played a handful of matches for Barrow Island in the National Conference following his release and before being snapped up by Haven.

“I’m looking forward to the year ahead at a new club and excited to be part of a team pushing for promotion back to the championship,” said Gillam, who had been part of the Wolves set-up since the age of 14, going full-time for the past three years.

“I was keen to join one of the Cumbrian teams so my agent and I got in touch with Carl (Forster, the Haven coach) and it went from there.”

Whitehaven player/coach Forster was delighted to have recruited a young Cumbrian forward with great potential, and said:: “I’m made up to get Ellis on board. He’s come through a top professional system at Warrington and being under-19 captain shows the type of character he is.

“He’s only young and is a big lad with good skills. We’re happy to get him on board after other clubs showed a lot of interest in him.

“I’d like to thank Graeme Taylor his agent for making the deal happen and I look forward to seeing Ellis in a Whitehaven shirt.”