The Manly Sea Eagles will leave a roster spot for 2026 open until the middle of 2025 as Daly Cherry-Evans waits to make a call on his future.
The Sydney Morning Herald have revealed that, despite telling the club he was keen to play on in 2026 just a month ago, Cherry-Evans is now less confident in his decision.
Instead, he has asked for time to make a decision which will come in the middle of the 2025 season.
Cherry-Evans, as it stands, is off-contract at the end of 2025 and could sign a one-year extension at any time, but is keen to retire a one-club player.
The star halfback, who captains both his club and his state where he plays for the Queensland Maroons in State of Origin, has already earmarked that representative retirement could be looming ahead of the 2025 campaign, but has not yet made a call.
If he retires from that arena, Tom Dearden could well be the favourite to slot into his number seven jersey despite playing five-eighth at club level for the North Queensland Cowboys.
At Manly, the club may well be hoping Cherry-Evans hangs around for 2026 in a bid to not have to bring young gun Joey Walsh into the side ahead of schedule.
He has re-signed until at least the end of 2027, and will likely bide his time while learning from Cherry-Evans, but it's clear he is the club's long-term solution in number seven.
Cherry-Evans' decision on his future could directly impact other areas of the club too.
The report suggests that when Cherry-Evans retires, Manly will attempt to move Tom Trbojevic to five-eighth.
The star, who himself is only signed until the end of 2026 and has battled with injuries in recent times, could negotiate with rival clubs from November 1, but it's clear he wants to, like Cherry-Evans, remain on the Northern Beaches.
Should he do that, then the club are reportedly weighing up his move to five-eighth both to reduce his workload, and also to ensure their chances of retaining Lehi Hopoate increase.
The youngster wants to play fullback long-term, and while he is also off-contract at the end of 2026, is one of the most talented juniors in the game, and a player Manly are desperate to retain.
It's understood if Cherry-Evans does remain at Manly in 2026, he will have to take a significant pay cut to fit into the salary cap. He currently earns a reported $1.2 million per season.
