Market Watch: Sydney Roosters Siua Wong among potential Dolphins targets in $2m NRL raid

Already the success story of the season, the Dolphins are now a major threat to NRL rivals in the transfer market - and one much-hyped Roosters young gun should be on their radar.

GOSFORD, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 17: Siua Wong of the Roosters is tackled during the NRL Trial Match between the Sydney Roosters and the Manly Sea Eagles at Central Coast Stadium on February 17, 2023 in Gosford, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)

Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins are armed with a $2 million salary-cap war chest as the NRL’s 17th franchise prepares to launch more market raids in pursuit of a watershed premiership.

News Corp understands the Dolphins – the surprise packets of the 2023 premiership after a month – have kept their salary-cap powder dry after struggling to land a big-name marquee recruit for their foundation season.

Now they have the financial latitude to up the ante, with Bennett and Dolphins recruitment chief Peter O’Sullivan watching the NRL market closely after recently securing Broncos duo Tom Flegler and Herbie Farnworth.

Farnworth was not only lured by the prospect of being mentored by super coach Bennett, but learning premiership-winning habits from the Dolphins’ former Melbourne triumvirate of Jesse and Kenny Bromwich and Felise Kaufusi.

A staggering 312 NRL stars will come off-contract over the next two seasons, including 129 this year, giving the Dolphins a plethora of options as they look to consolidate in 2024-25.

Bennett has made it clear the Dolphins won’t be panic buying in their formative years, but the expansion newcomers are chasing a strike middle forward, a dynamic back-rower and more depth in the halves.

With the bulk of their squad locked in for 2024, the Dolphins don’t need to recruit aggressively this season, but have already set their sights on 2025 and beyond.

Here’s six targets the Dolphins should consider as Bennett looks to bring more firepower to Redcliffe.

Could Payne Haas be tempted by a big offer from the Broncos’ rivals.

1. PAYNE HAAS (Broncos)

Position: Prop

Value: $1.1 million

The Broncos prop is a free agent from November 1 this year and the Dolphins should get the chequebook out. They have already poached his Broncos front-row cohort Tom Flegler and why not have a crack at the best young prop in the NRL? Off-contract at the end of 2024, Haas is on $848,000 this season. The 23-year-old seems happy at the Broncos, but if the Dolphins dangled a $1 million carrot, the NSW Origin enforcer would have to give a move from Red Hill to Redcliffe some serious thought. With Dolphins skipper Jesse Bromwich turning 34 in May, and edging towards retirement, Haas is a ‘Reddy-made’ replacement upfront.

2. NELSON ASOFA-SOLOMONA (Storm)

Position: Prop

Value: $850,000

Big Nelson is off-contract this season. The Dolphins have already succeeded in poaching three of his Storm teammates and the 130kg monster would feel right at home alongside hitman Kaufusi and the Bromwich brothers. Storm coach Craig Bellamy has done a wonderful job monitoring Asofa-Solomona‘s development and Wayne Bennett is the master mentor who could also extract the best of the Kiwi Test enigma. At 27, Asofa-Solomona is in the prime of his career and the 200cm man mountain would bring some genuine matchwinning menace to the Dolphins. The Dolphins have held discussions with Asofa-Solomona, who manages his own affairs, and would love to sign him.

3. JACK WIGHTON (Raiders)

Position: Five-eighth, centre

Value: $1 million

Wighton has dropped a bombshell on the Raiders by informing the Green Machine of his plans to test his value on the open market. The NSW Origin ace had some private talks with his management last year about potentially joining the Dolphins as Bennett began constructing his foundation roster. The Dolphins are skinny in the halves and Wighton would be a great attacking foil at five-eighth for the solid Sean O‘Sullivan, but he will be 31 next season. His versatility would give the Dolphins strike wherever they need it on the field.

Toby Sexton has fallen out of favour on the Gold Coast.

4. BRENDAN PIAKURA (Broncos)

Position: Back-rower

Value: $450,000

Once touted the next big thing at Red Hill, Piakura’s career has stalled. The bustling backrower struggled with injuries and concussions last year and started this season with similar problems. Piakura has only managed two NRL games over the past two seasons and a change of scenery at Redcliffe could reboot his career.

Brendan Piakura could blossom away from Red Hill. Picture: Liam Kidston

5. TOBY SEXTON (Titans)

Position: Halfback

Value: $450,000

The Titans playmaker was supposedly the Gold Coast’s halfback for the next decade. But he has fallen out-of-favour in a big way at Parkwood and is well down the pecking order following the arrival of Kieran Foran. With Tanah Boyd being handed the No. 7 jersey, and Jayden Campbell being groomed for a move to five-eighth, Sexton is facing a roadblock on the Gold Coast. He could be add some depth to the Dolphins’ thin halves stocks.

Siua Wong has previously been linked with the Dolphins.

6. SIUA WONG (Roosters)

Position: Back-rower

Value: $500,000

The Dolphins have already had a crack at this rising Rooster and it wouldn’t surprise to see them go again. Wong, 19, is a hard-running back rower that made his Test debut for Fiji in last year’s World Cup. He is yet to feature in the NRL but it won’t be long before Wong is a household name in the top grade.

RIVALS ON NOTICE AHEAD OF DOLPHINS NEXT TRANSFER RAID

Robert Craddock

Rival clubs have been warned the Dolphins days of being contract war whipping boys are over.

The Dolphins entered their first season with the reputation as the club which chased a lot of big fish such as Kalyn Ponga and Cam Munster but despite the occasional nibble couldn’t put one in the creel as players baulked at joining a new club.

But the rousing start to season with three wins and a loss has redefined the club’s status in the market place which has also been enhanced by the realisation that players living on the Redcliffe Peninsula have found decent homes at affordable prices.

These two factors combined are expected to make the Dolphins a huge saving in contract wars because they will not have to pay massive overs for players.

“They have that shine already, haven’t they?’’ experienced player agent Steve Gillis said of the Dolphins.

“It has really changed for them. If any player got an approach from the Dolphins from this point they would be (a) interested and (b) flattered that a club which has jumped out of the block so well and has Wayne Bennett at the helm has reached out to them.

Herbie Farnworth will join the Dolphins from next season. Picture: Getty Images

“That is a lot different from the reaction they might have got last year. There would have been people who might have a dodged a call from them last year who would now be very interested to hear from them. They have become an attractive proposition.

“We have two players at the Dolphins – Euan Aitken and Ray Stone – and they have settled in really well and love the place. The fact that they are playing well is a reflection on the fact of how happy they are off the field.

“There is a lot of footy to be played this year but you can see already they have bought really well. They have been patient and their salary cap is in good order.

“And that fact that they have already signed Herbie Farnworth and Tom Flegler for next year is really significant because there are not a lot of top players available for next season and they are two blue chips.

“Just getting those two means they will do better than most clubs as far as recruiting goes for next season.’’

Tom Flegler is another key signing for the Dolphins. Picture: NRL Imagery

Many of the Dolphins live in the Newport region of the Peninsula and in form forward Connolly Lemuelu said the attractiveness of the region would be a trump card for the Dolphins in player recruitment.

“Redcliffe is a beautiful area,’’ Lemuelu said.

“We are right next to the water and a lot of the boys are looking at getting property here. It is an attractive thing for players to come here to live and obviously it is a footy mad town as well.’’

The Dolphins have lost halfback Sean O’Sullivan for an extended period but Anthony Milford will fill a vacancy in the halves while hooker Jeremy Marshall-King will return from suspension and is expected to play a key role in organising the team.

Originally published as Market Watch: Sydney Roosters Siua Wong among potential Dolphins targets in $2m NRL raid