Which NRL player is Eddie Jones likely to target next?
The Wallabies head coach has made his stance on poaching NRL players to boost Australian rugby union stocks clear, having already approached Roosters young gun Joseph Suaalii and voiced his desire for nabbing Souths captain Cameron Murray.
But in a hit to Jones’ plans, Suaalii activated a clause in his Roosters’ contract by triggering a one-year extension until the end of 2024 while Murray is signed through to the end of 2025 with the Bunnies.
That rules both players out of the Wallabies’ 2023 Paris World Cup campaign, leaving Jones with the current crop of Super Rugby players to choose from for his squad.
However, Murray says he would be open to chatting with the esteemed head coach when his contract at Redfern ceases in 2025.
“I’m contracted for three years, that’s where my focus is, and beyond that, the time will come to think about my future,” Murray told The Sydney Morning Herald.
“I haven’t heard anything from Eddie. I haven’t heard from anyone, really.
“I’m not someone who will say, ‘I’m happy to win a few comps and then go somewhere else’. This club means too much to me to just tick off a few comps and then leave.
“If the time comes and I’m off-contract, and I’m negotiating my future, I’ll think about it then.”
Murray has experience playing union, captaining Newington College’s First XV as an inside centre during his school years.
With transfer whispers at an all-time high following Jones’ interest in converting NRL stars to union internationals, SENQ’s Ben Davis discussed another player who may catch the head coach’s eye.
“I think Patrick Carrigan, straight away,” Davis told SENQ Mornings.
“(He’s a) Terrace old boy, has played rugby.”
The Broncos star has won a World Cup with the Kangaroos and Origin with the Maroons but started his career as a union player, representing the St Joseph’s College, Gregory Terrace First XV before turning his focus to league.
At 190cm and 106kg, Davis believes Carrigan has the perfect build to return to rugby and a work ethic that could see him slot seamlessly into the Wallabies.
“What position would suit him? No.7? Would he be a flanker?” Davis questioned.
“He runs all day. He’s probably a bit too small, and he’s not a small man, but for a No.8.
“Maybe he can play in the centres as a 12.”
Wallabies Marika Koroibete and Suliasi Vunivalu are the latest NRL stars to take on union, both moving from the Melbourne Storm to Super Rugby before joining the national side.