The Brisbane Broncos are reportedly not ready to give up on axed outside back Selwyn Cobbo yet, but it will take a monumental pay cut to keep him at Red Hill.
The writing appeared to be on the wall for Cobbo and his future at the Broncos this week when he was again left out of Michael Maguire's side to clash with the Cronulla Sharks.
That was then backed up by the re-signing of Adam Reynolds, Kotoni Staggs and Blake Mozer on the same day.
It has long been reported the Broncos would only be able to keep one of Staggs or Cobbo, and the move to re-sign three players who will stretch the salary cap on upgraded deals appeared to mean Cobbo would be leaving at the end of 2025.
The outside back has previously suggested he is willing to move away from Brisbane despite being closer to Cherbourg where he grew up, but there are fears he could be lost to the game if the Broncos do not re-sign him, per a News Corp report.
Despite previous reports saying Cobbo could attract as much as a million dollars per year on the open market, those offers are unlikely to materialise now, with the outside back instead set to be offered about $300,000 per year from the Broncos on a cut-price deal.
It's all the Broncos can afford, with a stretched salary cap led by big-money deals for the likes of Payne Haas, Patrick Carrigan and Reece Walsh among others who have been extended and upgraded in recent times.
The Broncos salary cap predicament is even more alarming given they still have 12 spots up for grabs heading into 2026.
Speaking to the publication though, Maguire said he is not giving up on Cobbo or attempting to force him out of the club.
โNo, definitely not [trying to force him out],โ Maguire said.
โSelwyn is a big part of what we do.
โI had some time with โSelly' in Cherbourg at the start of the year and it was great to meet his family and build that connection.
โI'm not giving up on him.
โAll players at some stage of their careers need to focus on the things that they need to get right.
โIf Selly gets it right, we all know what capabilities he has, but there's some things he needs to work on."
Cobbo, who is on a reported figure of about $650,000, would be cutting his salary in half to remain at the Broncos.
It's unclear if any other clubs have made a formal approach to the outside back who has Origin experience under his belt yet, but interest has been expressed in the vicinity of $700,000 per year, with the St George Illawarra Dragons believed to have met with him, and the North Queensland Cowboys also interested.
The Broncos won't be able to match that, with the star having now been able to negotiate with clubs since November 1 last year.
It's believed the Dolphins could be another of the options given the geographical attraction of keeping Cobbo close to home.
The star has not publicly set a timeline for a decision to be made on his future, but Maguire confirmed Cobbo is still very much in his plans for the remainder of the season.
Cobbo, who has struggled with the commitments of being a full-time rugby league player previously, has played 80 NRL games for the Broncos, 6 Origins for Queensland, 1 Test for Australia, 1 match for the Prime Minister's XIII and 2 matches for the Indigenous All Stars in 2022 and 2023.
