The Canberra Raiders are reportedly working on re-signing hooker Tom Starling.
The explosive dummy half has been with the Raiders since 2019, playing all but one of his 115 NRL games with the club after debuting in 2018 with the Newcastle Knights.
Starling has become a permanent fixture of Ricky Stuart's side in the nation's capital, playing a mix of roles over the last 24 months which has included spending time through the middle of games in a lock forward role.
Off-contract at the end of 2025, it was believed he was all but destined to leave the nation's capital for his next contract after the Green Machine signed Jayden Brailey for 2026 and beyond.
His arrival from the Newcastle Knights also goes hand in hand with the continuing emergence of Owen Pattie, which was set to leave both Starling and Danny Levi - who will almost certainly leave the club at year's end - out in the cold.
But now a News Corp report has revealed the club are trying to re-sign Starling, and could take three dummy halves into next season as part of their Top 30.
It's likely the way Starling has been able to add a role at lock forward to his repoitaire has had a say in the call, as well as Brailey's injury issues which have limited both his number of games, and role he plays, in the Hunter.
Starling, who has been Canberra's starting dummy half for all seven games so far this year, had his management meet with the Raiders last week per the report and it's understood a big step was taken towards his re-signing.
The 26-year-old hasn't been linked with other clubs yet, but there are a lack of dummy halves off-contract at the end of 2025, and it's likely he would have alread fielded inquiries from other clubs over his next deal, having been able to negotiate with rivals since November 1.
