Broncos coach Anthony Seibold hopes to secure signing of Ben Te’o if he becomes available
‘If he wants to come and play for us I would love to have him.’ It sounds as though Ben Te’o will have no problems finding a new NRL home if he gets released from his Super Rugby contract.
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Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold has declared he would “love to have” Ben Te’o in the strongest sign yet the former Queensland Origin hitman is on the verge of a comeback to the Broncos.
As revealed by News Corp Australia, the NRL will not stand in the way of registering a $100,000 deal for Te’o after the Broncos approached the salary-cap auditor to determine the forward’s notional value if he returned to the NRL.
Brisbane have until June 30 to fill two more spots in their full-time roster and with Te’o’s deal with rugby employer the Sunwolves set to collapse, the planets are aligning for the former Maroon to wear Broncos colours again.
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Te’o’s hard hitting and premiership experience would be vital for a youthful Brisbane team and Seibold has put out the welcome mat for the 33-year-old enforcer.
“If Ben wants to come and play for us I would love to have him,” Seibold said.
“Ben is obviously a player of interest.
“If he wants to come and play for us for a minimum wage, I would love to have him.
“My understanding is he is still contracted to the Sunwolves, so until he gets some clarity over his commitments in Super Rugby, then he isn’t available at present.
“But if he becomes available ... we have to fill two spots before June 30 and they are both minimum wage spots.
“We won’t waste any more money than those two sports for 2020 because we have plans in place for 2021.”
Those plans include re-signing young guns David Fifita, Tesi Niu and Herbie Farnworth to upgraded contracts, but Seibold would relish Te’o mentoring experience for Brisbane’s emerging forwards.
“He is experienced but hasn’t played league since 2014,” he said.
“If it’s not Ben, it’s got to be somebody (the Broncos sign).
“We have to get someone in to fill the squad and we’d like it to be Ben.
“If he wants to play for us on a minimum salary, who wouldn’t want someone who has done what Te’o has done in both codes?
“I know he loves the Broncos. I have only met Ben twice in passing, but Peter Nolan (Broncos head-of-football) and Darius (Boyd, veteran Brisbane centre) who has played with him before speak highly of him.”
Te’o last week left the door ajar for a Broncos return after his 75-game stint from 2009-12.
“I have to sit tight and wait. I’m still contracted to the Sunwolves and I will respect my ties to them until I have some clarity over my future,” he said.
“That’s why I’ve been at the Broncos most days training with the young guys ... I’m trying to stay as fit as I can at this time.”
Originally published as Broncos coach Anthony Seibold hopes to secure signing of Ben Te’o if he becomes available