While Ricky Stuart may have been privately fuming that his meeting with Sione Finau was leaked to the media in July, that hasn't stopped the Canberra Raiders from confirming the arrival of the young St George Illawarra Dragons outside back.
Following a tour of the club's facilities over a month ago, Finau will join the Raiders on a three-year contract until the end of 2028, reuniting him with former teammate and close friend Savelio Tamale.
Continuing the trend of investing in younger talent, Finau's arrival is the latest blow to Shane Flanagan and the Dragons as the 23-year-old has become the most recent young talent to depart the Red V, following Aaymon Fitzgibbon and Finau Latu out the door.
Debuting in 2024, he has appeared in seven NRL matches in his short career to date, crossing the line for four tries. He has also made ten tackle busts, four line-breaks, and averaged 151 running metres in his five appearances in 2025.
“I'm very excited for the opportunity, the door has been opened up, and I'm very grateful,” said Finau.
“I feel I've adapted to the speed and fit in really well so far in first grade, and I think Canberra saw that attribute.
"I was more so interested in probably giving centre a crack, but I'm happy wherever they put me. More so in that centre or wing spot, or anywhere in the back five."
While the talented youngster is hoping to cement a spot in the back five in first-grade, he will likely be used as a back-up initially, given the outstanding form of Tamale and rookie Jed Stuart.
Matthew Timoko, Sebastian Kris and Xavier Savage occupy the other three positions in the back-line, while Kaeo Weekes has cemented the No. 1 jersey and recently inked a long-term extension until 2029.
"We're really looking forward to having Sione join us in 2026. He's a very talented outside back who can cover several positions and has shown plenty of promise in his limited first-grade appearances so far," coach Ricky Stuart said.
"We've been in discussions with Sione for a few weeks now, and his manager, Michael Cincotta, has been great to deal with and has been upfront during the process, allowing us to work on doing what's best for Sione and the club."
"We will let Sione finish his time with the Dragons and look forward to him joining the squad in the pre-season."
If he would prefer to be eighth choice for a back-five role at Canberra, rather than probably an automatic choice at St George, then so be it.
I’m guessing he wants to be associated with a successful club rather than a struggling club (and that is understandable) but if he doesn’t get any game-time at Canberra until injuries kick in, he might wish he was still playing first grade each week at the Dragons.