The noise, speculation and rumours around the future of star St George Illawarra Dragons half Ben Hunt are unlikely to be going anywhere anytime soon.
The Queensland State of Origin winner - who can play either halfback or hooker - is off-contract at the end of 2023 and reports suggest the Dragons are having plenty of trouble tying him down.
From the idea that Hunt potentially wants a clause added to his contract regarding the future of coach Anthony Griffin, to reports suggesting the Dragons 'lowballed' Hunt with an offer of around $750,000 per season, the Dragons have just over two months remaining until Hunt gains the right to negotiate with any other club in the competition.
That is a scary thought for Dragons fans when they consider exactly how good he has been this year, and how poor the remainder of the team have played around him.
While the Dragons will be desperate to retain Hunt, it's no sure thing, and with clubs already showing interest, Zero Tackle looks at the top five clubs not named the Dragons where he could end up in 2024.
2. Gold Coast Titans
The Titans are rumoured to be in the hunt for Hunt, and that shouldn't come as a surprise.
Heading into the 2022 season, coach Justin Holbrook made plenty of big calls around the make-up and composition of his side.
He went with an inexperienced spine, and elected to move AJ Brimson to play out of position at five-eighth while Jayden Campbell would take over the number one.
The experiment has been a dismal failure, while Campbell and Toby Sexton haven't hit the levels they were supposed to.
Kieran Foran and Sam Verrills will arrive next year, but with Foran likely to wear the number six, it still doesn't address the halfback issue.
Tanah Boyd has been strong in recent weeks, but if a player like Hunt wants to move back to Queensland, then the Titans should be throwing the kitchen sink and then some at him.
