In-demand prop Matt Lodge seems set to snub a $1m-a-season contract from the Warriors to re-sign with Brisbane, but the Auckland NRL club already has another Broncos player on their radar.
Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold says the NRL club is set to announce player re-signings in the coming days, once they are salary-cap compliant for next season, but confirms Lodge would be among them.
To make the deal happen, the Broncos will release Jaydn Su'A to South Sydney.
"We won't lose a player we want to keep," Seibold said. "There are some imminent signings that we believe will happen over the next few days that are good signings.
"But we can't get the contract registered until we are cap compliant going forward - that's the rules.
"It's not fantasy footy, but we won't lose a player we want to keep."
NRL.com reports that Lodge has to make a decision on his future, with a provision in his Brisbane contract to trigger a new deal at the Broncos for 2020, if he doesn't make a decision by June 30.
But while the Warriors appear to have missed out on Lodge, they now have their eyes on another young Bronco - 22-year-old hooker Jake Turpin.
Turpin wasn't in Brisbane's top 30 squad, but earned promotion as injury replacement for Andrew McCullough and impressed coaches.
The Broncos are keen to keep Turpin, but the Warriors and the Bulldogs have reportedly tabled more attractive offers for the Ipswich product.
The Courier Mail reported the Warriors were targeting Lodge and Turpin as part of a AU$1.2 million deal to improve their roster.
The report claims the Warriors have offered Lodge AU$1 million a season - which would make his one of the highest paid players of the game - while they're prepared to table AU$200,000 annually for Turpin, who currently receives AU$70,000.
Turpin's preference is to stay at the Broncos, but if he wants a better payday, he may have to look elsewhere.
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