Dragons offer rookie champ Sunia Turuva three-year deal… and the fullback jersey

Shane Flanagan has sat down the 2023 NRL Rookie of the Year Sunia Turuva with a big offer: join St George Illawarra on $500,000 a season, through to 2027, and play fullback for the rebuilding club.

The Dragons will face a challenge to get Turuva with Penrith and Newcastle interested, but neither has quite the carrot Flanagan is wielding.

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Turuva has been eager to play fullback in the NRL for some time, and while the Knights should be able to meet the Dragons cash-wise, the 21-year-old is definitely not going to dislocate Kalyn Ponga or Dylan Edwards if he chose either over the Red V. He already proved he can play as a star number one representing Fiji at the World Cup.

Before making any decision, Turuva’s management will meet with the Panthers again.

Penrith are, The Sporting Base understands, still very eager to keep the 21-year-old in their squad, but have conceded the club’s salary cap squeeze makes it quite tricky.

“We’re endeavouring to meet with his management this week,” Panthers chief executive Matt Cameron said of Turuva. “We love ‘Tito,’ we want to keep him at the Panthers. We know there’s external interest, but we haven’t given up.”

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Elsewhere at the Dragons, wantaway winger Zac Lomax has found a new home with the Parramatta Eels and Flanagan has opened talks to re-sign Jaydn Su’A for three more years.