After a sensational campaign in the QLD Cup, which saw him named the competition's top try-scorer with 26 tries in 22 matches, flyer Dudley Dotoi has been rewarded with a train-and-trial contract from a Queensland NRL club.
Named in the 2025 QLD Cup Team of the Year, Zero Tackle understands that the 22-year-old has been rewarded with a train-and-trial contract from the North Queensland Cowboys for his excellent form at their feeder side, the Townsville Blackhawks.
Granted the opportunity to train with the NRL squad during the pre-season, Dotoi will then return to the Blackhawks for the 2026 season after inking a contract extension with the side.
However, his train-and-trial contract with the Cowboys could very well be extended later on with his reserve-grade coach believing that he is too good to be playing in the QLD Cup competition and should regularly be playing in first-grade.
“I really hope I am not coaching him next year,” Dutoi's QLD Cup coach and former NRL playmaker Terry Campese told The Townsville Bulletin in September.
“He belongs in the NRL. He is an NRL player.
“It's hard to say (why he is not in the NRL). Clubs have got their top 30 rosters and development lists sorted halfway through the year, but the further we go in the finals, the more eyes will be watching him.
“If I was a recruitment guy at an NRL club, I would be moving fast to get him.”
