Dragons skipper Ben Hunt is hopeful young gun Tyrell Sloan will stick with the club after initirally requesting an early release.
Meanwhile, decision day is looming for Cameron Munster as the star five-eighth weighs up a move to the Dolphins or re-signing with the Storm.
Elsewhere, there’s a bit of movement set to happen at the Bulldogs and the Raiders’ Player of the Year is closing in on an extension.
Read on for the latest NRL Transfer Whispers.
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DRAGONS SKIPPER URGES YOUNG GUN TO STAY
Ben Hunt wants to see talented fullback Tyrell Sloan stay at the Dragons and bide his time.
Sloan recently requested an early release from his contract, however it was denied by the club.
The 20-year-old has been stuck behind Cody Ramsey and it’s understood has become frustrated with his lack of game time.
Speaking to The Sydney Morning Herald, Hunt encouraged Sloan to “work hard” and pointed out how he didn’t nail down a spot in first grade until his mid-20s.
“I hope he stays,” Hunt said.
“I know the club wants him to stay, and we’ve all seen the glimpses of the talent he has had. “If he can put his head down and work hard in the pre-season, you never know what can happen for him.
“He’s never spoken about his frustrations to me. I can understand if he’s frustrated with not playing, but all young players go through the same thing, and I didn’t play regular first grade until I was about 24.
“It’s a learning curve for him, he needs to embrace that, work hard and you never know what will happen.”
Sloan made his NRL debut last season and has now played a total of 13 games in the top grade.
He started the year as the Dragons’ first choice fullback, only to be dropped after three games. He returned to the NRL side in Round 10 but was dropped a week later, before getting four games in the final rounds either off the bench or on the wing.
D-DAY LOOMS FOR MUNSTER
It is the contract saga that won’t go away but at last, it looks like Cameron Munster’s future will be decided by next week.
That is according to his player manager Braith Anasta, who played golf with Munster on Friday to talk over his decision before making a final call after a sit-down with his family.
“He’s been away with his family,” Anasta told The Daily Telegraph.
“By next week we will have an answer for Melbourne. The whole idea of him getting away with his (family) was to come to some sort of conclusion on his future.”
There have been plenty of suitors for Munster’s signature, led by the NRL’s newest franchise the Dolphins while the Broncos and Tigers have also been linked to the five-eighth.
Former teammate Cameron Smith said he believes Munster could be linking up with Wayne Bennett and the Dolphins given how much he has delayed the decision.
“If I’m brutally honest, if he was to commit to the Melbourne Storm and extend his contract, he would’ve done so by now,” Smith said on SEN 1170 Breakfast.
“That’s my gut feeling. He’s been at the club since he was 16 years of age and we’ve heard (Munster’s manager) Braith Anasta come out and say the Melbourne Storm offer is in the area it should be.
“So what’s holding him back? As bad as this may sound for all the Storm supporters and myself, I feel like he will be going to the Dolphins.”
Munster had spoken previously about putting his contract call on hold until the Storm were out of finals contention, while also pointing towards the importance of family in his decision.
“I‘ve spoken to (chairman) Matt Tripp and the club and I’m going to put a hold on negotiations until the final series is done – I just want to focus on finals and hopefully go deep in September which would be nice,” Munster said at the time.
“We’ve got a big game this Saturday against the Raiders so looking forward to that.
“If it was only about myself then I’d love to stay, but at the same time I’ve got a young family that I need to worry about and obviously she’s from Queensland, so we need to make sure we will make the right decision.”
BULLDOGS EYE UTILITY BUT SET TO LOSE ONE OF THEIR OWN
Wests Tigers utility Fa’amanu Brown is off-contract, but there’s plenty of interest after his resurgent season back in the NRL.
Having debuted back in 2014 with the Sharks, he struggled with injuries over his four seasons at the club, before another two difficult years with the Canterbury Bulldogs.
He moved to Featherstone in England’s second tier to reboot his career, before joining the Tigers in May – going on to become a vital do-it-all man for the joint-venture club.
Brown debuted in Round 11 and made 13 appearances this season, starting ten games, mostly at hooker.
The club is hoping to keep him on their books, but News Corp reports that the Bulldogs and new coach Cameron Ciraldo are set to make a significantly higher offer than the Tigers for the 27-year-old.
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The Bulldogs look set to lose one of their own though, with the Titans preparing to snare forward Joe Stimson.
The 26-year-old made the move from Melbourne to Belmore in the hope of getting more playing time but has been unable to lock down a full-time starting roles.
Injuries have not helped either, with Stimson suffering a season-ending shoulder injury, which was particularly poor timing given he was trying to push for a new contract at the Bulldogs.
Instead, Stimson has had to look elsewhere and The Daily Telegraph reports he will join the Titans on a two-year deal.
RAIDER CLOSES IN ON LONG-TERM DEAL
The Raiders’ Player of the Year, Joseph Tapine, is reportedly set to sign a four-year extension with the club worth $3.4 million.
Tapine’s current contract doesn’t expire until the end of next season, but from November 1 he is free to negotiate with rivals for 2024 and beyond.
However, News Corpreports the star prop will be locked in before that day arrives.
Tapine’s manager, Jim Banaghan, has informed the Raiders of his client’s wish to remain in Canberra and he was expected to put pen to paper within the next week.
The 28-year-old was awarded the Mal Meninga Medal last week after a career-best season.
His efforts for the Green Machine have also been rewarded with the Kiwi international to earn $850,000-a-season under his new deal, which will make him one of the highest-paid props in the game.
Banaghan revealed to News Corp that Tapine, who aspires to captain the Raiders one day, could have demanded more money elsewhere but wanted to stay under coach Ricky Stuart.
“Joseph could have got more money on the open market if he wished to wait until November 1,” Banaghan said.
“However, he prioritised being at Canberra above money. He loves playing under Ricky and he has really enjoyed this season.
“He was so proud to win the Mal Meninga Medal as the player of the year and he wants to see out his career at the Raiders. At one point down the track he would love to captain the club and he now has that chance.”
