Reuben Garrick has fast become one of the best outside backs in the competition.
He has all the tools as well. Height, pace, agility. He also has goal-kicking, and is one of the best in the game at it.
He has 89 tries in 157 games to go with almost 500 goals and can play at either centre or wing with equal ability.
It's little wonder, then, that the Manly Sea Eagles are keen on retaining his services beyond the end of 2026, when his contract expires.
But it's also little wonder that Garrick is going to cost a pretty penny on his next deal, which, if it's a long-term one, could well be his last. He will be 29 going on 30 by the time that contract starts in 2027.
So when reports broke recently that Garrick is likely to test the open market from November 1, it didn't come as any great surprise.
But which clubs would genuinely want to enter the mix for him if he were to make the call and leave the Sea Eagles, where he has played all 157 of his first-grade games since leaving the Dragons' pathways and debuting on the Northern Beaches in 2019?
The list is extensive, but here are the top candidates, in no particular order.
6. Perth Bears
The Bears are going to be linked with every decent player coming off-contract at the end of 2026 who is hitting free agency on November 1.
If Garrick is one of them, then we'd expect a sizeable offer to land on his manager's desk in the early hours.
Whether Garrick is interested in moving across the country and playing in a team unlikely to contend for a premiership anytime soon remains to be seen, but he'd certainly win a payday by agreeing to make the shuffle.
Not too much more to be said here. Let's move on to clubs already in the competition.
At Manly, at the start of 2027 season, Luke Brooks will be 33, Jerbo will be 33 and Turbo will be 30.
The Brothers T both come off contract at the end of 2026, and I expect both to retire. Brooks is contracted to the end of 2027.
The significance of that is that at the start of 2027 Brooks will be the only player eligible for the Veteran and Developed Player Allowance. In 2028 Luke is likely to have hung up his boots and Manly will have no-one eligible for that Allowance.
Will they leave money on the table by having no “9 years with the club or 10 years in total” player ? At the start of 2028 Garrick will be the only player on the roster (unless they hire another old stager) to qualify the club for the allowance.
The Allowance is worth another $300K on the cap.
Now, I freely confess that I don’t know whether having a _single_ “old hand” is sufficient to get the club the extra $300K on the cap, or whether the Allowance is $X per “old hand” up to a maximum of $300K.
I’m not too embarrassed. Mr Google can’t find me anything to tell me, either.
Anyway, the point is that at the start of 2027 Reuben Garrick will enter his ninth season with Manly.
I think Manly will factor that into its decision on what the club can offer him, and I suspect he will stay with them.