Cameron Smith's future has been the focus of many people's attention all season long.
That speculation hasn't died down much since the Storm skipper led his side to another premiership victory.
But now we have a deadline, from the man himself.
Smith has declared that he will have a decision on his playing future within a month, with his looming commitment being one of the stories of the season.
Cameron Smith, at his book launch, says he still doesn’t know if he will play on. Will make a decision in the next month.
— Chris Garry (@ChrisGarry7) November 16, 2020
Smith's future is expected to impact the futures of Harry Grant and Brandon Smith as much as his own.
The two young stars are keen for more opportunity in first-grade but would likely play second (and third) fiddle behind their skipper.
“There’s no way I’m re-signing for another 12 months if the club is going to lose either Harry (Grant) or Brandon (Smith). I don’t want to see the club struggle in the long term just so I can play one more season.,” he wrote in an extract published in The Daily Telegraph.
“I was well aware of Brandon Smith’s and Harry Grant’s situations.
“And I knew that if I chose to play on in Melbourne, it would be hard for the Storm to retain all three of us, even though the club had said time and time again that it could.
“I appreciated that Brandon and Harry were building careers of their own. Brandon has established himself as the New Zealand No. 9, and Harry played 2020 with the Wests Tigers, where he had a standout season.”
That leaves Smith with a decision to make. It is likely he would need to either retire from rugby league or play on, with the Titans and Broncos reportedly in the running for his services.
The three-time premiership winner has scored 2,786 points in 430 games.
Another article about Cam Smith? Just retire, I’m sick to death of this.