Cooper Cronk could quit final year of Storm contract to be closer to new flame Tara Rushton

TV bombshell Tara Rushton could deliver the Australian Kangaroos Test No. 7, Cooper Cronk to St George Illawarra Dragons.

September Club

TV bombshell Tara Rushton could deliver the Australian Kangaroos Test No. 7 to the St George Illawarra Dragons.

The Sunday Telegraph can reveal Cooper Cronk is considering quitting the final year of his contract with the Melbourne Storm in a $1.1 million sacrifice to be with Sydney-based Fox Sports stunner Tara Rushton — and the Dragons are ready to pounce.

Cronk is likely to snub a $1.1m contract option with Storm in 2017 so he can move closer to Rushton — and the Queensland No. 7 is already deep in discussions with the Dragons in a move that would see him finish his career at Kogarah.

Rushton — first linked to Cronk in June — is firmly planted in Sydney and the pair is keen to get serious after a six-month long-distance relationship. A regular in Melbourne to cover A-League matches, the Fox Sports host confirmed her relationship with Cronk after the pair happily posed for photos at the AFL grand final in September.

Cronk is contracted to Storm until the end of 2017 but is already negotiating to leave Melbourne at the end of the year with the playmaker telling Storm officials he is likely to not take up the option for 2017, which is in his favour.

Tara Rushton at the 2015 Dally M Awards held at The Star in Pyrmont. Picture: Richard Dobson

Souths seemed like a natural fit for Cronk with former Melbourne assistant and now Rabbitohs coach Michael Maguire close friends with the precision-passing No.7.

But the Dragons have already blown the Rabbitohs out of the water and are poised to offer the Kangaroo a three-year deal worth at least $3.5m. The offer — which will be among the biggest in the club’s proud history — should be enough to see Cronk move to Kogarah to replace Benji Marshall, who has told St George officials he will retire at the end of the year.

Cronk will be reunited with former Melbourne teammate Gareth Widdop in one of the NRL’s most potent halves pairings should he accept the deal. A Souths official last week told this column the club could not compete with the money on offer from the Dragons after signing Sam Burgess.

Expect the Bulldogs to have a late crack at Cronk with Canterbury sure to start a bidding war should the untested halves partnership between Josh Reynolds and Moses Mybe fail to fire.

Originally published as Cooper Cronk could quit final year of Storm contract to be closer to new flame Tara Rushton