NRL 2024: Jamal Fogarty release comes back to haunt Titans, Brodie Croft emerges as potential saviour
After losing Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Tom Gilbert to season-ending injuries, the Maroons could turn to a Dragons hit man and a surprise Dolphin amid Queensland’s injury crisis. See the full SPORT CONFIDENTIAL.
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Dragons hit man Jaydn Su’A has surged back into the Queensland frame for this year’s Origin series.
Su’A has started the 2024 premiership in rampaging form under new Dragons coach Shane Flanagan, who appears to have reignited the hard-hitting fire in the former Broncos forward.
Su’A played four Origin games for Queensland in 2020-21 but has not been seen in Maroons since the appointment of coach Billy Slater in 2022.
That could change this year, with Su’A impressing with his powerful running and having scored two tries in the past three weeks – including a four-pointer in last week’s defeat of Wests Tigers.
Queensland have lost Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Tom Gilbert to season-ending injuries and Su’A could be a handy option for the Maroons.
Former Queensland Origin warhorse Corey Parker believes the in-form Dragons back-rower wouldn’t let Slater down if recalled to the Maroons.
“Jaydn Su’A has to be a serious contender for the back row,” Parker said.
“He has been in great form for the Dragons, he has been really damaging for them.
“There’s a few options in the back row. Kurt Capewell has been good since going to the Warriors and he shouldn’t be written off yet.
“Shane Flanagan has done a great job with Su’A.
“He has got his physicality back, he wants to win the contest, he has been aggressive and everything he is doing smacks of Origin football.
“Su’A is in supreme shape. He has been devastating for the Dragons so I wouldn’t have an issue seeing him back in the Origin side.”
DOLPHIN BOLTS INTO ORIGIN MIX
Dolphins prop Josh Kerr has emerged as a potential Maroons bolter amid Queensland’s injury crisis.
Kerr has been one of Redcliffe’s best players in the opening six rounds of the NRL season.
Wayne Bennett is such a fan of Kerr that he had him in Queensland’s memorable 2020 Origin squad, which clinched an against-the-odds series victory.
Kerr didn’t play a game, but was credited with playing an integral part in keeping morale high during the challenging Covid camp.
Now Kerr’s form, coupled with a stack of injuries to Maroons forwards, has opened the door for a potential Origin debut.
Dolphins skipper Jesse Bromwich said Kerr wouldn’t let Queensland down and urged Maroons coach Billy Slater to consider him.
“Wayne doesn’t like rapping him much, it goes to his head,” he said.
“He had a really good pre-season. Last year he was playing at 120-something kilos, but he turned up to pre-season at 114 kilograms. From day one he meant business.
“He plays his best when he just keeps it simple and just runs straight and hard, getting us quick play the balls, and he’s been doing that. He’s been able to score a couple of tries this year.
“I’d love to see Kerry’s name get thrown in there (Origin mix). I know he’d be able to handle it, you just look at the Indigenous v Maori games he’s played in, and he’s been one of the best players on the park.
“If Billy was to go down that route, Kerry would put his hand up.”
$220K BLUNDER HAS COME BACK TO HAUNT TITANS
It is the $220,000 blunder that has come back to haunt the Titans.
Former Titans co-captain Jamal Fogarty returns home to Queensland this week when the Beaudesert junior leads Canberra into battle with the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
Fogarty broke Gold Coast’s hearts with his golden-point field goal last week and has been a revelation for the Green Machine since his move to Canberra in 2022.
Fogarty was the Titans’ halfback and co-captain in 2021 and had his heart set on finishing his career with the club when Gold Coast bosses tapped him on the shoulder to fast-track young gun Toby Sexton.
Sexton (Bulldogs) and Fogarty have since both left the Titans. Fogarty was on a basic deal at the Titans but has since tripled his value at Canberra on a contract worth around $600,000 this season.
“Jamal is arguably the best-value halfback in the NRL today,” said his manager, Tas Bartlett.
“Jamal had a year to go at the Titans when he left.
“He had no intention of leaving, he was co-captain at the time, but then the Titans saw Toby Sexton as a 10-year halfback and that led to Jamal ending up at Canberra.
“They saw Toby as the heir to the throne, so we had to find another club for Jamal.
“Ricky Stuart (Canberra coach) has been magnificent for Jamal. He has given him his full backing and Jamal is so happy at Canberra that he would love to finish his career at the Raiders.”
TITANIC SAVIOUR EMERGES
Former Broncos halfback Brodie Croft has been touted as potential playmaking saviour for the Gold Coast Titans.
Croft has been carving up the Super League since leaving the NRL in 2021 following the most tumultuous period in Brisbane’s history.
A former understudy to Maroons legend Cooper Cronk, Croft has resurrected his career in England and was crowned the Super League’s Man of Steel in 2022 – the competition’s highest individual honour and equivalent of the NRL’s Dally M Medal.
Now 26 and more comfortable with his game, Croft has been thrown up as a recruitment target for Titans coach Des Hasler, who finally axed struggling halfback Tanah Boyd last week.
Croft’s manager, Chris Orr of PSM, said his client was enjoying life in England but has ambitions to one day return to Australia for a second crack at the NRL.
“Brodie went to the Super League where he has regained his running game and become one of the most lethal runners in the competition,” he said.
“He’s won the Man of Steel and could win it again this year. He is playing his best football.
“He’s switched clubs (from Salford to Leeds) and doing a really good job for the Rhinos. His coach Rohan Smith has been rapping him to me and says he’s been a fantastic acquisition as a player and person.
“Brodie absolutely has NRL aspirations and has got NRL options in his contract every year.
“When you look at the best halfbacks in the game – and take Nathan Cleary out – they are over 30 these days. Brodie is entering the matured part of his career.”
The Titans investigated signing Croft last year but the planets didn’t align. Perhaps Hasler could take another look given the issues he has with his halves.
PANTHERS PREMIERSHIP FORWARD SHOPPED TO BRONCOS
The Broncos have three back-rowers on their radar, including Jack Gosiewski, after ruling out a poaching bid for Penrith Panthers premiership forward Luke Garner.
Sport Confidential can reveal Garner’s services have been offered to the Broncos, who have two spots vacant on their 30-man full-time roster and are scouring the open market for back-row talent.
With Brendan Piakura (hamstring) sidelined and Kurt Capewell having joined the New Zealand Warriors, the Broncos are keen to bolster their back-row stocks as the grind of the State of Origin period looms.
The Broncos have identified three names as possible recruits and a fourth target landed on their desk when hard-running back-rower Garner was offered as a potential signing.
The 28-year-old Dubbo junior is off-contract at season’s end and boasts a premiership ring, playing off the bench in Penrith’s 26-24 grand-final win last season – ironically against the Broncos.
The Panthers will lose James Fisher-Harris to the Warriors next season and Garner is no guarantee to be at Penrith in 2025 as the premiers battle salary-cap pressures.
The Broncos had some interest in Garner, but ultimately resisted making an offer, unable to afford the forward’s asking price, which was in excess of $300,000 a season.
Brisbane have outlaid millions retaining big guns Pat Carrigan, Ezra Mam, Adam Reynolds and Reece Walsh and it’s understood they have around $250,000 to spend to add depth to their back row.
Garner has played 92 NRL games but has struggled to break into the Panthers side on a weekly basis since his move from the Wests Tigers in 2022.
Gosiewski remains the most likely recruit for the Broncos in coming weeks, but his move to Red Hill is contingent on being granted a release from his existing club the Cowboys.
North Queensland have already paid Gosiewski’s monthly wage for April, so the 29-year-old will stay in Townsville at least until May 1, when the NRL’s new pay cycle begins.
Should the Broncos get Gosiewski next month, that will give Brisbane 29 players on their full-time roster, still leaving one vacancy which they can fill before June 30.
Former NSW Origin enforcer Tevita Pangai Jr remains an option, but the Broncos will only consider the Tongan torpedo if he quits boxing and focuses fully on rugby league.
In the absence of Piakura, Dragons import Jaiyden Hunt has done an admirable job and will again start in the back row in Saturday night’s clash against the Raiders.
SAILOR’S FRENCH REVOLUTION
Wendell Sailor has revealed how close his son Tristan came to join French rugby before his lifeline from the Broncos.
Sailor Jr has become a key weapon for the Broncos, forcing his way into Brisbane’s top 17, but just two years ago the 25-year-old was on the verge of starting a new life in French rugby.
The then 23-year-old was looking for a fresh start following his turbulent departure from the Dragons and was close to heading to France when Brisbane’s feeder club Souths Logan came from the clouds.
“Not many people know this but Tristan was about to go to French rugby,” Wendell recalls.
“After he went through his court case (Sailor was cleared of sexual-assault allegations), he said, ‘Dad I want to get out of here, I want to go overseas and play rugby in France’.
“I said, ‘Mate, don’t give up yet’. I knew he had unfinished business in Australia, I suggested he go to Queensland for a fresh start and thankfully Souths Logan gave him a lifeline.”
Sailor has been a revelation in Brisbane. Now 25, he has become a super sub in Brisbane’s top 17 and Sailor believes Tristan can play in the halves alongside Ezra Mam when Adam Reynolds is tipped to retire at the end of next year.
“Tristan is the ultimate team player,” Sailor said. “He can play five or six positions.
“Fullback in his main position but I have no doubt he can do what Darren Lockyer did and move into the halves one day.
“If they are looking for someone post Adam Reynolds, Tristan could easily play six and Ezra Mam could play halfback.”
EX-ROOSTER CALLS OUT NELSON
Storm giant Nelson Asofa-Solomona is keen to get back in the boxing ring and Tongan Test star Sio Siua Taukeiaho is waiting for him.
Sport Confidential understands former Roosters premiership winner Taukeiaho is keen to throw down with Asofa-Solomona at season’s end in an NRL heavyweight blockbuster.
Asofa-Solomona made a savage statement in his boxing debut last October with a brutal knockout of Dolphins prop Jarrod Wallace and the 135kg monster is itching to reignite his fight career.
Taukeiaho is equally excited about returning to the ring and hopes to fight Asofa-Solomona later this year once the duo’s rugby league commitments are over.
Taukeiaho is currently with Super League French club Catalans recovering from a knee injury and is keen to return to the NRL next season after his move to the Bulldogs this season fell through when he failed a medical.
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