Curran on the hunt for new club after Warriors grant early release

Josh Curran has been given permission to walk away from the last season of his New Zealand Warriors deal if he can find a new home in the competition, leaving the star second-rower looking for a new club to join ahead of the 2023 NRL season.

Wide World of Sports has already reported two Sydney clubs have burst ahead in the race for Curran’s signature, and The Sporting Base can reveal at the very least the St George Illawarra Dragons, Manly Sea Eagles, and Canterbury Bulldogs have already begun plotting bids for the 23-year-old. Which of these two are in the lead is yet to be confirmed.

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The release is mainly to do with the Warriors’ salary cap; the New Zealand club is feeling the squeeze financially and needs to shed several big contracts if they want to keep their playing roster intact.

Curran is one man to make way, especially because of his shift into a bench role.

Before the 2023 season, the 23-year-old was a wrecking ball starting second-rower who clocked up 37 appearances from 2019 to 2022. This season, however, he fell down the pecking order and while he went on to make 23 appearances as the Warriors made the preliminary finals, most were from the interchange.

He averaged around 52 metres a game this year and made 21 tackles a game, though these lower-end numbers can mostly be attributed to his playing time—just over 40 minutes each match.

The signings of Marata Niukore, Dylan Walker, and Jackson Ford all played a part in limiting his time under Andrew Webster, especially because they were favoured defensively.

Captain Tohu Harris also regularly played 80 minutes this year.

It would be shocking if Curran stayed in free agency for long. While he has fallen away from the top squad for the Warriors, he is still a strong ball player and can play several roles in any pack. He also adds explosive energy to any matchday lineup.

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The Sporting Base has heard Curran much prefers coming back to Sydney to play, giving the early leading clubs like the Dragons, Sea Eagles, and Bulldogs an edge in negotiations.