Winger Daniel Tupou is leaning towards playing one more year with the Sydney Roosters, but should the Bondi club not accommodate him, he is prepared to pursue a two-year deal in the Super League.

Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson on Tuesday confirmed Tupou would return for the NRL finals after dislocating his shoulder last Friday night against the Knights – but no call had been made about next year.

Tupou’s preference would be to play a 16th season in the red, white and blue. But the 35-year-old met his manager Sam Ayoub on Monday who informed him several English Super League clubs had expressed interest in him.

The chance to sign a two-year deal has appeal, while Tupou also knows the Super League would be less physically demanding.

Tupou remains one of the best aerial threats in the game, and bagged a hat-trick in his 300th milestone match against the Eels earlier this month. The Super League is known for its attacking brand of football, which would suit the Tongan international.

Mark Nawaqanitawase will leave the Roosters at the end of the season to return to rugby, and should Tupou also try his luck abroad, the Roosters have plenty of depth, including Cody Ramsey, Tommy Talau, Billy Smith, Manly recruit Reuben Garrick, and Tom Rodwell. They also have Rex Bassingthwaighte who is being groomed to be James Tedesco’s No. 1 successor, with the club happy to give their future fullbacks time on the wing at the start of their careers.

Tupou has never wanted any fuss made about his achievements, and played down the extent of his injury early in the second half in Newcastle last week.

Tedesco said on Sunday: “The other night he laid on the floor and said, with no emotion, ‘My shoulder’s out’. That was it.

“We all went up to him, but he was his usual calm self. They popped it back in, he was still out there, and I started to think he was going to keep playing, but they took him off.

“Players get older and you expect a bit of a dip [in form], but that’s not the case with ‘Toops’ – he goes about his business with no fuss and we have so much confidence and belief when he’s out there.”

The setback means Tupou, who has played 302 matches for the club, is no chance to overtake Jared Waerea-Hargreaves as the most-capped Rooster should this year be his last.

Waerea-Hargreaves played 310 games, and with the Roosters to play six regular season games, and potentially up to three finals, Tupou could have moved to 311.

Robinson confirmed Tupou would return for the finals, and the shoulder injury would sideline him between four and six weeks. As for his future, Robinson said: “I’d say it’d be in the next two to three weeks, we’ll know where ‘Toops’ is at and where we’re at.”

Young weighs up Raiders’ deal

Dan Walsh

Canberra have offered Hudson Young a multimillion-dollar, three-year extension as his Raiders teammate Morgan Smithies will join Perth next season.

The Raiders have progressed negotiations with Young after he was sidelined with a season-ending Achilles injury last weekend, and are gunning to keep their star NSW back-rower off the open market on November 1.

A three-year deal would keep Young in the nation’s capital until the end of 2030. With the NRL’s salary cap forecast to rise to at least $15 million from 2028, Young’s total extension is expected to be worth around $3 million and make him one of the game’s best-paid back-rowers.

Along with Penrith enforcer and Blues teammate Liam Martin, Young is the most accomplished edge forward coming off-contract in 2027.

Young’s Achilles rupture came as a cruel blow to Canberra’s late-season finals charge given the 28-year-old’s superb Origin campaign and status as a nailed-on World Cup starter for the Kangaroos.

Canterbury’s Jacob Preston (24), Wests Tigers’ Samuela Fainu (22) and the Dolphins’ recent Queensland Origin debutant Kuikefu Finefeuiaki (22) represent the next crop of back-rowers yet to be tied down long-term, though the Tigers’ plans to present Fainu with an upgraded deal were a significant factor in Jarome Luai being released early to join Parramatta next year.

Martin’s agent will meet with the Panthers this week as the club works through its star-studded off-contract list, with co-captains Nathan Cleary and Isaah Yeo the club’s retention priorities.

Martin and Brian To’o have both been linked to the incoming PNG Chiefs franchise, and while Penrith will be given first and last rights on Martin’s future, a request for permission to negotiate early with rival clubs hasn’t been ruled out, either.

Teammate Moses Leota was granted a brief window to talk to rivals by the Panthers last month to get an idea of his market value.

Melbourne have also given five-eighth Cameron Munster permission to negotiate specifically with PNG after undergoing minor knee surgery, though the Storm have tabled a two-year extension for 2028-29 at a reduced rate from his estimated $1.25 million salary.

The Chiefs are unlikely to present their own offer until November 1, or when there is clarity around Cleary’s future given he is their preferred playmaking target.

Smithies, meanwhile, has agreed to terms on a three-year offer from Perth. The 25-year-old had been deep in negotiations with Canberra earlier this year before the club was told his preference was to move back to the UK and resume his English Super League career.

Perth’s offer proved too good for Smithies to refuse, but the English international will leave the Raiders on good terms despite the change of plans.

The Bears have also targeted Eels co-captain Junior Paulo as a potential captaincy option for inaugural coach Mal Meninga next season, with a two-year offer expected to be taken up by the veteran prop this week.

Perth have slowly but surely built a robust pack with Penrith’s Liam Henry and Scott Sorensen, Cronulla utility Siosifa Talakai and Bulldogs back-rower Josh Curran their most notable signings up front.

The Bears have ample salary cap space to add a marquee spine player given Storm utility Tyran Wishart headlines their playmaking options for 2027.