NRL news: Brandon Smith to meet Sydney Roosters before deciding NRL future
The Titans and Dolphins are willing to throw wads of cash to sign Brandon Smith, the Roosters offer something more valuable than mere money.
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Brandon Smith will keep the clutch of Queensland clubs fighting for his signature on hold until he has met the Sydney Roosters and given them a final shot at convincing him to move to Sydney.
Smith toured the Dolphins facilities on Thursday and is expected to make a detour via the Roosters on his drive back to Melbourne in the next fortnight.
It is understood the Roosters are unlikely to match the dollars on offer in Queensland, but will sell Smith on the idea of competing for premierships and raising his long-term value by playing at a club with a proven pedigree for improving players under the tutelage of coach Trent Robinson.
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Smith has been on a tour of three of the Queensland clubs over the past fortnight, starting at the Cowboys before visiting the Gold Coast Titans and the Dolphins this week.
All that remains is to break bread with the Roosters, something Smith is expected to do in coming weeks as he takes the long road back to Melbourne.
News Corp revealed in July that the Roosters were interested in Smith and a potential move to the glamour club would stoke the rivalry between them and the Storm, having been fired in recent years by the switches of Cooper Cronk, Adam O’Brien and Jason Ryles to the Roosters.
It is understood Smith will then give Melbourne one final chance to secure his services when he returns to the club to begin pre-season training.
Smith has become the hottest property on the open market, having entered the final year of his deal on November 1.
His manager Stan Martin sent an email to all 16 clubs at 5.59am on November 1, only a matter of hours after the window opened calling for clubs to table their offers for the New Zealand international.
Martin had made no secret of his plans to take Smith to market and he made it eminently clear in his email that he expected his client to receive offers commensurate with his place in the game.
According to Martin, Smith was one of the top 10 players in the NRL last season. He also made it clear that Smith wanted to be considered as a starting hooker and any offer was to exclude third party agreements.
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