The Newcastle Knights have reportedly locked up the signing of Dominic Young, but it won't happen for a number of weeks.
The Knights have been in negotiations with the Sydney Roosters and Young in recent times after the Englishman was dropped to reserve grade by Trent Robinson.
He earnt a brief reprieve last week when Robert Toia was unavailable while in Queensland State of Origin camp ahead of his representative debut, but with Toia back on deck this week, Young is once again 18th man for the tri-colours at NRL level.
The initial stages of negotiations for an immediate release back to the Knights, where Young first played after arriving in England, proved problematic.
They broke down entirely after the Knights reportedly refused to pay all of Young's contract. Trent Robinson was incredibly blunt at a press conference a few weeks ago, accusing the Knights of not following through on their approach for Young after asking the Roosters to pay a portion of his salary.
Those issues now seem to have passed by, with News Corp reporting that Young will join the Knights, effective after Newcastle clash with the Roosters in a couple of weeks.
That match comes in the Origin shortened Round 15, and the deal is set to go through between the two clubs for Young to return to the Hunter from Round 16.
That is still before the June 30 deadline, and could mean Young is available to play for the Knights from Round 16 onwards, when Adam O'Brien's struggling side take on the Dolphins.
Young would be expected to walk straight into the Knights' side, who have had major attacking issues throughout the 2025 campaign to sit at the wrong end of the ladder.
He may not fix them all, but he will certainly add an attacking threat out wide and strong running game.
They were never the concerns at the Roosters, but after just over a year in Bondi, his defensive and ball handling problems became too much for Trent Robinson, who elected to move Mark Nawaqanitawase to the wing, while Billy Smith and Robert Toia played in the centres.
Reports had suggested Young was set to be dropped a number of weeks earlier, but Robinson was never able to do so with injuries constantly meaning the tri-colours weren't at full strength.
