Surprise news broke this week that South Sydney Rabbitohs halfback Jamie Humphreys may be on the move at the end of the 2026 NRL season.
As the story goes, Humphreys was in negotiations with South Sydney and close to agreeing to a new deal, but that all changed when Payne Haas agreed to join the club for 2027 and beyond.
South Sydney would have been preparing a fairly substantial monetary outlay for Keaon Koloamatangi of course, but to land Haas would have seen more of their already fragile salary cap used.
Latrell Mitchell and Cameron Murray lead the rest of the big deals around the club, and while Cody Walker could retire at the end of the year freeing up some extra dollars, the story around Humphreys is not exactly a monstrous surprise.
Someone was always going to be squeezed out by the arrival of Haas, althoug it being your halfback is probably less than ideal for South Sydney.
He may still find a way to get a deal over the line, but that looks increasingly unlikely, and there is a good chance he will be elsewhere come kick-off in 2027.
Here are the clubs who will be doing more than just keeping minor tabs on the situation, keeping in mind that he can play halfback and hooker.
3. North Queensland Cowboys
If there is a club who need change, and aren't sure of their spine at all, then it's probably the Cowboys under Todd Payten.
Payten currently cuts the shape of a man under serious pressure. In fact, you expect he won't see out the season without a fairly dramatic turnaround for the Townsville-based outfit.
But that doesn't mean planning won't be underway for the future, and what seems clear is that the Cowboys brass have more or less decided - based on evidence over the last 12 months - that Jake Clifford won't be it.
It also seems they'd prefer to keep Tom Dearden at six, rather than shuffling into the halfback role full time.
To do that, the Cowboys need a game manager, and a good kicking leader to line up in seven, and Humphreys could be the guy to do that long-term.
He surprised with his skillset and read of the game throughout 2025, and as that continues to improve in 2026, clubs will sit up and take notice.
The Cowboys should probably be one of them.
