NRL transfer news 2024: Wests Tigers eye Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Lachlan Galvin urges Stefano Utoikamanu to re-sign
The Wests Tigers are monitoring the future of Storm star Nelson Asofa-Solomona as they await a decision from Stefano Utoikamanu. See the latest transfer news.
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The Wests Tigers are monitoring the form and future of Melbourne prop Nelson Asofa-Solomona as they await a decision from Stefano Utoikamanu on whether he accepts a lucrative $4 million offer to stay at the club.
Asofa-Solomona, who has four years remaining on a multimillion dollar deal with Melbourne, has been largely used off the interchange bench this season amid talk that he has fallen out of favour with club powerbrokers.
While it is understood he has no desire to leave the Storm, the Tigers are believed to be watching the situation from afar as they face their own challenge to convince Utoikamanu to take up a five-year extension worth $800,000 a season.
The club’s clear preference is for Utoikamanu to stay – they have made no secret of their desire to have him stay at the club for the long term – but the Tigers would be silly not to draw up a list of potential replacements should their young prop decide to leave at the end of the season.
Asofa-Solomona was seen as a potential target even though he has several years remaining on his deal in Melbourne. The 28-year-old looks in desperate need of a change, having started the season slowly and struggled to win back a place in the Storm side.
He is also well known to Tigers coach Benji Marshall – the pair were teammates in the New Zealand national team at the back end of Marshall’s career.
The Tigers’ more pressing priority is to convince Utoikamanu that his future lies at the club. The 24-year-old has made 65 appearances for the Tigers since moving from Parramatta but has a clause in his deal that allows him to leave at the end of the season if the club misses the top eight.
A fortnight ago, his departure seemed a formality. However, the Tigers have strung together successive wins while blooding some of their emerging stars, showing some green shoots that would no doubt have helped Utoikamanu’s mood.
Marshall and Richardson have also worked overtime to convince Utoikamanu that the club is heading in the right direction and they have been given extra ammunition given the recent performances.
The club is expected to have a clearer picture on the young prop’s plans at some point this week, which in turn should mean they are in position to make a call of their own.
Asofa-Solomona aside, the Tigers may also take a look at Canberra prop Emre Guler after it emerged that he had spoken to the club about the prospect of leaving at the end of the season on compassionate grounds.
Guler, who has another year remaining on his deal in the nation’s capital, is understood to have spoken to Raiders officials about the prospect of moving to Sydney to be closer to his family.
It is understood the Raiders have agreed to review the situation later in the year but they are unlikely to do anything that weakens their squad.
Guler has played 91 games for the Raiders since making his debut six years ago. He would have no problems finding a new club in Sydney given the clamour for quality front rowers across the NRL.
The Raiders are believed to be sympathetic to the situation but also wary about doing anything that would deplete their squad.
Guler could emerge as a target for the Tigers if Utoikamanu decides to seek greener pastures next season. The Bulldogs, St George Illawarra and South Sydney are all in the market for middles as they head into 2025.
GALVIN CALLS ON TIGERS TEAMMATE TO STAY
Teenage five-eighth Lachlan Galvin has implored Stefano Utoikamanu to follow his lead and commit his future to the West Tigers as club officials launch a last-ditch bid to convince the barnstorming prop to accept a lucrative $4 million contract extension.
Utoikamanu, one of the Tigers’ best in recent weeks, is likely to be a free agent at the end of the season given a clause in his contract that makes him up for grabs once the Tigers are mathematically out of contention for the top eight.
While the Tigers have won their past two games, they need a miracle to qualify for the finals and the expectation is that the club will give Utoikamanu permission to explore his options ahead of time if they fail to convince him to accept their bumper offer.
Galvin, who recently pledged to honour the final two years of his contract, wants Utoikamanu to be alongside him to help turn around the Tigers.
“I don’t want to be versing him next year,” Galvin said.
“We muck around, I tell him ‘just stay here, just stay for a couple more years’ and I think we can turn this club around. I don’t want to be on the other side marking him.
“I’m already in the wrestle room with him and I get a bit scared. We want him here and as long as I’m here, I want him here with me. One hundred per cent we’re trying to get in his ear to stay.
“He’s a massive part of this team as you’ve seen in the last two weeks, he’s killed it. So we want him here as a Wests Tiger.”
The Tigers have done their level best to convince Utoikamanu to stay as rival clubs circle with intent, keen to step up their interest in the NSW State of Origin prop once he is given the green light to negotiate.
It shapes as a seminal decision for the Tigers after a fortnight when they showed that the future may be brighter than many anticipated. Two straight wins with a young side have given Tigers fans reason for hope as they wait on the arrival of Penrith superstar Jarome Luai next season.
The $4 million question is whether the past two weeks have been enough to convince Utoikamanu to stay. If not, the Tigers may be best placed scouring the market for potential replacements for Utoikamanu given they would have some significant salary cap space burning a hole in their pocket.
They have already scored one significant victory by convincing Galvin that his immediate future lies with the club. He had been agitating for an exit even though he had two years remaining on his deal such was his concern with the club’s direction and his own development.
Coach Benji Marshall and chief executive Shane Richardson convinced him to stay, effectively buying themselves just over 12 months to show the 18-year-old that the club is on the up.
As it stands, Galvin is free to negotiate with rival clubs from November 1 next year but Richardson and Marshall will no doubt be working towards getting his signature on a new deal.
Galvin conceded it was hard to have people questioning his loyalty as his future become public fodder.
“Obviously it hurts,” Galvin said.
“I don’t want to let people down or let the club down that gave me my [NRL] opportunity. It was a tough two weeks for me. I think the rest was probably the best thing for me to just get back working hard.
“When I’m working hard and getting back to enjoying my footy I think that makes your performances even better. It was a rough two weeks but it was good to get that [win against Canberra] and show people that I want to change this club and I’m going to be at this club for the next two years.”
HUNT RULES OUT TITANS MOVE
—Peter Badel
Maroons hooker Ben Hunt has ruled out a move to the Titans, declaring he wants to stay at the Dragons and form a one-two strike force with new St George Illawarra recruit Damien Cook.
Dragons skipper Hunt has set the record straight on speculation he could walk out on the Red V as he prepares for Origin II at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Wednesday night.
In the lead-up to Origin I, a candid Hunt said he had not ruled out exploring the open market amid interest from the Titans on a possible Queensland homecoming.
But the acquisition of South Sydney champion Cook on a two-year deal has added fuel to Hunt’s desire to remain at the Red V and engineer a St George Illawarra revival under coach Shane Flanagan.
Amid the turmoil at the Dragons last year, when he sensationally asked for release, Hunt said he wanted to see St George Illawarra deliver some big scalps and Flanagan has delivered in the form of Cook.
Having rejected Hunt’s transfer request, Flanagan is keen to ramp-up talks on a 12-month extension after this year’s Origin series.
The 34-year-old is off-contract at the end of 2025 and is keen to join forces with Cook, his former NSW Origin adversary, for the 2026 season.
Asked if he wants to stay at the Dragons, Hunt said: “Yeah mate. After Origin we will sit down and have a conversation and work it out.
“At this stage there is nothing really in place but I have talked to ‘Flanno’.
“We are just waiting to get through Origin and sit down and have a chat about it.
“All things are going well (he will sign a new deal).
“I am really excited that Jaydn has extended with the club and we have got ‘Cooky’ coming on board.”
Su’A last month inked a two-year deal to extend his tenure until the end of 2026 and the Maroons back-rower urged Hunt to stay loyal.
“I hope he stays for sure,” Su’A said.
“He is a quality player who does it at clubland and at representative level.
“I would love for him to re-sign and hopefully try and get a few more coffees out of him with his new contract.”
Hunt said he was relishing the prospect of Cook adding firepower to the Dragons’ spine.
The veteran of 206 NRL games celebrated his 33rd birthday on Sunday and Hunt insists Cook is not a spent force, saying he can bring a new dimension to the Dragons around the rucks.
“His signing is huge,” Hunt said.
“Not just as a player but also as a leader around the club.
“He is an old head and has played at the top level in Origin and knows what it takes to be a professional.
“The more guys like that you can bring to the club the better and I am just really excited we were able to lure a guy of his calibre to the club.
“We have got some great signings and we have extended guys that needed to hang around like Jaydn.
“It is really exciting times and the club is moving forward.”
Originally published as NRL transfer news 2024: Wests Tigers eye Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Lachlan Galvin urges Stefano Utoikamanu to re-sign
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