Before he joins NZ Warriors in 2024, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck has piqued the interest of Manly Sea Eagles, as they seek urgent injury cover.
The Sea Eagles have likely lost star fullback Tom Trbojevic for the season, after he suffered a chest injury playing for New South Wales in State of Origin.
Under NRL regulations, a club can apply for salary-cap exemption, should a player in its top 30 contracted spots be ruled out for the season for at least 12 weeks playing representative football.
The club can claim up to $350,000 as salary cap relief to sign another player.
While Manly already boast options to fill the No.1 jersey, Tuivasa-Sheck would loom as an appealing option.
The former Dally M medallist is stuck in limbo in New Zealand rugby, after missing out on the All Blacks' 36-man Rugby Championship squad, with an NPC campaign with Auckland looming as his final commitments, before returning to the NRL.
NZ Rugby sources have told Newshub they do not expect Tuivasa-Sheck to request a release from the rest of his contract, while the Warriors say there will be no push from their end to reunite with their former captain.
Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold has outlined the process to replace Trbojevic and confirms that Tuivasa-Sheck's name has come up in the club's planning.
"It's too early to say we've got someone on the horizon, but if it's confirmed that the surgeon says they'll operate on Tom, then we'll look at who's available and who can fill that position, he said.
"It's a like-for-like replacement and there probably aren't too many [like Trbojevic].
"There are a number of names that we can look at and I'm sure he [Tuivasa-Sheck] would be one of them. I don't want to be presumptuous and we want to put the support around Tom."
Any deal to sign Tuivasa-Sheck would be strictly short term, with a three-year Warriors deal already confirmed for next season.
Join Newshub at 8pm Friday for live updates of the Warriors v South Sydney Rabbitohs NRL clash
