NRL 2020: Cameron Smith decision may cause Melbourne Storm domino to fall

Melbourne may have to ward off a poaching raid from an eager rival if Cameron Smith makes a major decision about his 2021 intentions.

What does Cameron Smith’s future have in store?

The Bulldogs may swoop on one of Melbourne’s most dependable players if Cameron Smith decides to play on in 2021.

Kiwi Test No. 9 Brandon Smith has been starting at hooker in recent weeks in the absence of his injured skipper, keen to prove he deserves to be the club’s first-choice rake when the former Queensland and Australian captain calls it quits.

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However, the Storm also have gun rookie Harry Grant on loan at the Wests Tigers this season, and he has said he intends to return to Victoria in 2021.

If he comes back home and Cameron Smith goes around again, then the difficulty of squeezing three specialist hookers into one spot may force someone out.

Cameron Smith can play halfback and Brandon Smith has spent much of 2020 coming off the bench and in the back row, but the trio all want to play dummy-half. If Brandon Smith thinks having Cameron Smith and Grant in the same squad will limit his opportunities, he may be tempted to head elsewhere.

Despite being contracted to the Storm until the end of 2022, if Cameron Smith plays next year, Daily Telegraph rugby league reporter Dean Ritchie believes the Bulldogs are in line to make a play for Brandon Smith.

The Kiwi international is reportedly at the top of incoming Canterbury coach Trent Barrett’s wishlist, as the former NSW Origin star looks to inject some much-needed class into a roster that can’t match it with the rest of the competition.

Is there room for Brandon Smith and Cameron Smith in the same team.

“There’s some really strong mail out there that the Bulldogs and Trent Barrett are very interested in him (Brandon Smith), and why wouldn’t you be,” Ritchie said on the Big Sports Breakfast.

“He’s a class dummy-half and hooker.

“I think if Cam Smith goes around next year, don’t be surprised if the Bulldogs have a nibble at Brandon Smith, whether it’s for 2021 or 2022, whenever that may be.

“I know Barrett is a huge fan. They (the Bulldogs) have got some issues at dummy-half. He would be the answer, so it’s a bit of a watch-this-space at the moment.

“But certainly Trent Barrett has got some ideas of where his roster should be and needs to be and he is going to go, I reckon, full bore in the next two to three months to really try and reinvigorate that roster over the next to years.

“And Brandon Smith, as I understand, is at the top of that recruitment list.”

There has been speculation Cameron Smith may finish his career with the Broncos in his home state of Queensland, but everyone in the NRL is waiting for the 37-year-old veteran to make a call on his future.