St George Illawarra have stood firm and denied Ben Hunt an immediate release from his contract, thwarting Brisbane’s bold bid to poach the State of Origin star in their pursuit of the 2023 premiership.
After formal talks with Hunt and his management concluded on Monday morning, the Dragons were confident of mending the relationship with their captain.
They will name him to play against local rivals Cronulla this weekend as they look to finally move on from a season of off-field unrest.
“I appreciated the open and honest discussion and will continue to work alongside the club and now focus on our game against the Sharks this Thursday night,” Hunt said of the latest contract discussions.
In the wake of the Dragons’ coaching upheaval, with Shane Flanagan replacing Hunt’s close confidant Anthony Griffin from 2024, the veteran halfback sought a move home to Queensland.
He had been linked with an immediate switch to the second-placed Broncos, who first scouted him as a pre-teen and turned him into an established NRL player across 187 first-grade games.
Contracted with the Dragons through 2025, Hunt could not see a path to premiership success at the joint venture and was poised to provide the Broncos with an immediate sugar hit at hooker on the run to the finals.
The Dragons had already formally denied his release request earlier in the month and met with Hunt and his management for the first time to discuss the matter in Wollongong on Monday morning.
Hunt’s Origin duties had previously delayed in-person talks.
During the meeting, the Dragons listened to Hunt’s frustrations but reiterated their stance on his release request.
The club believe they will retain Hunt for the remaining two-and-a-half years of the new contract he signed last October.
“The club listened to Ben’s concerns and is committed to working with him throughout the remainder of his playing contract,” said Dragons CEO Ryan Webb.
“Both Ben and the club share a common goal of winning football games and building a successful football club.”
Retaining Hunt is a significant boost for a Dragons side aiming to start afresh under premiership-winning coach Flanagan.
Saints are in the midst of their longest finals drought as a joint venture, having last played in the post-season in 2018, and are languishing in last spot on the ladder through 17 rounds this year.
They have been dogged by off-field scandals in recent seasons – most notably the 2021 COVID-19 barbecue breach – but Hunt has been a shining light through the lean years.
He is their only current Origin representative and finished third in the Dally M Medal rankings last year.
With Hunt seemingly off the table this year, the Broncos will back Billy Walters and Cory Paix to marshal the middle of the park from dummy-half as they hunt their first premiership since 2006.
