The Canberra Raiders are planning a last-ditch effort to keep veteran halfback Jamal Fogarty with coach Ricky Stuart revealing that the Raiders are in the process of renegotiating a one-year contract to keep him at the club.
Getting better with age, Fogarty has spent the last four seasons with the Canberra Raiders, which has seen him take his game to a new level and be regarded as one of the best kickers in the competition.
However, his long-term future in the nation's capital has remained uncertain for some time, since the club brought in Ethan Sanders from the Parramatta Eels during the pre-season and the U19s NSW Blues being touted as the club's long-term halfback.
Earmarked as Daly Cherry-Evans' replacement for some time, News Corp reported on Wednesday that the Manly Sea Eagles are preparing to offer him and his management a two-year contract, which would see him play at the club for the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
It is understood that the contract is believed to be worth around $500,000 per season.
The news surrounding the veteran halfback's future comes as the Canberra Raiders have until the end of this weekend (Round 6) to take up the club option in his current idea, which would keep him in the nation's capital for another season.
Nonetheless, he may remain at his current club after he chatted about his future over coffee with Raiders coach Ricky Stuart and the Green Machine are attempting to thrash out a new deal to keep him around for 2026, per The Canberra Times.
"We're in the process of renegotiating a one-year deal for Jamal," Stuart told The Canberra Times on Wednesday.
"I had a coffee with Jamal this morning while we're away, and he knows I want him here at the club, and I know he wants to be here."
According to the publication, Stuart is also set to sit down with the manager of Tom Starling to keep the dummy-half in the nation's capital beyond this season.
Arriving at the nation's capital in 2019 after a one-year stint at the Newcastle Knights, Starling has been a key piece of the club's spine over the past four seasons but has primarily come off the interchange bench.
Reaching the 100-game milestone club in 2024, the 26-year-old still has plenty to give and is likely to attract interest from both teams in the NRL and Super League if he remains unsigned for the 2026 season.
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"It's early in the season. I'm just trying to concentrate on getting the boys prepared to win a game of football," Stuart added.
"[Raiders recruitment manager Joel Carbone's] doing a really good job in all the communications with it.
"It's a long process, but something that Joel's putting a lot of time and effort into."
