North Queensland Cowboys local junior Tom Duffy is reportedly set to be squeezed out of the club, potentially straight away.
Duffy, one of the more talented young halfbacks in the game, has struggled to break through at first-grade level for Todd Payten's side in Townsville, where he has instead been forced to play in the Queensland Cup.
First promoted to the club's Top 30 in 2024, the halfback debuted at NRL level in Round 1 this year, but could only feature in two losses gaining a solitary try assist before Jake Clifford returned and replaced him in the number seven jumper.
It now appears Duffy is even further down the pecking order in Townsville, with Clifford dropped recently, seeing utility Jaxon Purdue move into the five-eighth role, and co-captain Tom Dearden shuffle into the seven.
That was always a likelihood pre-season, but it came as a surprise to see Clifford dropped, and Duffy, who has long been regarded as a future halfback option for the club, shuffled even further away from the best 17.
It's now being reported by News Corp that all of that has seen rival clubs - none of whom have been named - come into contention for his signature.
He is off-contract at the end of the year, but the Cowboys salary cap is bloated, and they could well look to move him on immediately, with the June 30 transfer window still being just over a month away.
Should the move happen, it will allow the Cowboys to forward pay a handful of other salaries and create cap room for next year. Under NRL rules, any player who leaves after the start of a season does not need to be replaced, and the club can run through the second half of the year with less than a full complement of 30 players.
That salary cap move for the Cowboys will allow them to work through other long-term deals, including one for Purdue who they are in talks with over an extension - he is off-contract at the end of next year.
Duffy, a former Australian Schoolboys representative, could well wind up at a host of clubs needing a halfback re-enforcement, including the Newcastle Knights or St George Illawarra Dragons who have made changes in the halves in recent weeks and have spots open in their roster.