The Cronulla Sharks have reportedly permitted forward Royce Hunt to leave the club at the end of the 2025 season.
Hunt is on contract with the Sharks until the end of next season, but surprisingly, the club have reportedly said they have no intention of releasing him early.
Despite that, Hunt reportedly has permission before November 1 to negotiate with rival clubs as Cronulla looks to expedite his exit from the club.
If he does sign a deal for 2026, there is no guarantee he will remain in black white and blue during 2025.
However, the news – reported by News Corp is seemingly the clearest sign yet that the Sharks have made over who will be in their starting group of forwards next year and beyond.
It comes with Cronulla agreeing to a deal with Addin Fonua-Blake, who earlier this year was granted a release from the final year of his deal with the New Zealand Warriors on compassionate grounds to return to Sydney.
Fonua-Blake – who will without a doubt slot straight into coach Craig Fitzgibbon’s starting side – means there is a logjam for spots in the Shire next year.
The emergence of Thomas Hazelton, the re-signing of Jesse Colquhoun, Toby Rudolf and Braden Hamlin-Uele, and potential extensions for Oregon Kaufusi and Jack Williams, combined with the fact Cameron McInnes will still be the club’s lock in 2025, means there are far too many players for the spots available – five middle forwards could regularly expect to be picked.
McInnes, Fonua-Blake and Rudolf are all likely walk-up starters, leaving just two bench spots for Colquhoun, Hazelton, Hamlin-Uele, Hunt and potentially Kaufusi and Williams.
Hunt’s potential exit from the Shire maybe shouldn’t come as a surprise given he has only made five NRL appearances so far this season, with only one coming in the starting side. He has also only played more than 20 minutes on one occasion.
Fonua-Blake’s arrival will only push him further down the pecking order in the Shire, and it’s understood he may have no issues getting a new deal, with the Canterbury Bulldogs and South Sydney Rabbitohs believed to be among several clubs reported to have already expressed interest.
Hunt, even without permission from the Sharks, can negotiate with rivals from November 1.
Source:: ZeroTackle
