By Dan Walsh
The Bulldogs won’t be entering the race for Daly Cherry-Evans’ signature, as Roosters coach Trent Robinson considers a bid for the veteran halfback that would echo Cooper Cronk’s premiership-winning swansong at the club.
Having been touted as a smokey to pursue the wantaway Manly skipper this week, Canterbury general manager Phil Gould told Nine News on Thursday night that the Bulldogs will not be chasing Cherry-Evans.
“I really admire DCE as a person,” Gould said. “He’s an ornament to the game. Obviously I’ve been a fan of his football his whole career. But Daly Cherry-Evans will not be coming to the Bulldogs.”
Canterbury’s move came hours after Robinson and Dolphins counterpart Kristian Woolf confirmed their interest in chasing Cherry-Evans.
Just as Cronk’s arrival as a champion, mid-30s playmaker in 2018 enhanced his legacy and delivered back-to-back titles at Bondi, Robinson said on Thursday that the Roosters were obliged to explore the possibility of signing one of the best halves of the past decade.
Along with the Dolphins, the Tricolours have been touted as a leading contender to land Cherry-Evans after the 36-year-old’s seismic declaration that this will be his last season at Manly.
Daly Cherry-Evans is still weighing up whether to play on in 2026.Credit: Getty Images
Robinson said the Roosters had yet to discuss Cherry-Evans’ entry on to the market, though it’s believed the glamour club were among the handful of sides quietly sounded out by Cherry-Evans’s management late last year to gauge interest in his market value.
“We haven’t discussed it, is the first thing. It’s pretty big news for the game obviously and pretty rare that a player like that comes on the market, especially at this time of the year,” Robinson said.
“We haven’t discussed it as yet but as a business, you’ve got to look at it as well. I’d say we’ll get at that when we know a bit more info though about [when] decisions get made as well.”
Robinson reiterated his long-term plans to build his roster around injured $1 million prodigy Sam Walker, who is signed until the end of 2027.
Cooper Cronk won premierships with the Roosters in 2018 and 2019. Credit: Peter Rae
Sandon Smith is also signed for 2026, while Chad Townsend, 34, was recruited as a playmaking mentor for the pair this season.
While Cronk’s 2018 signing alongside current skipper James Tedesco forced Roosters favourite son Mitchell Pearce out of the club, a slew of marquee exits have left Robinson with scope to go after Cherry-Evans should he decide to play on next season.
The Dolphins also have the salary cap space to entertain a seven-figure salary and luring Cherry-Evans back to his native Queensland, where he would be viewed as a mentor to rising half Isaiya Katoa.
Cherry-Evans’ durability has been regularly highlighted by the likes of Immortal Andrew Johns, who wrote in this masthead on Thursday that he could play “until he turns 40 if he wants to”, having missed just nine games through injury in 15 seasons.
Robinson agreed that “as preparation and recovery improves, we’re going to have players that are going to play longer,” but has made a point of prioritising the club’s next generation through the recently established Roosters Academy.
“I think people were waiting for us to do something last year and we’ve been pretty clear about what we’ve been doing with our players and our halves,” Robinson said.
“We’re pretty clear about the development of [Walker and Smith] and that doesn’t change. We’re still heading on that path. You do have to be aware of [player] movement and understanding all that, but a lot of things have got to happen, too.”
The Roosters’ recruitment and retention has come under the microscope of late given the unexpected twin departures of Joey Manu and Joseph Suaalii to rugby union that coincided with stalwarts Luke Keary and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves finishing their NRL careers.
Early releases for Terrell May (Wests Tigers) and Sitili Tupouniua (Bulldogs) have also been questioned given the pair have been among the game’s most destructive forwards so far this season.
Star back-rower Angus Crichton joked this week about taking David Fifita’s pay packet after his sensational backflip on the Roosters led to Crichton’s own retention and career-best form, with the two marking each other on Friday night when the Titans are hosted at Allianz Stadium.
Brandon Smith’s $2.5 million, three-year signing may yet result in an early release to the Rabbitohs later this season once he returns from injury.
His replacement – NSW Origin and Cowboys hooker Reece Robson – is viewed internally as replicating the toughness and reliability of former Roosters skipper Jake Friend, a key figure during their last premiership run with Cronk at the scrumbase.
Robson, Cherry-Evans and Tedesco are all managed by the same player agency, too, which does nothing to douse theories of a similar play to the last major Roosters overhaul - with a champion halfback recruited as its centrepiece.
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