The Canberra Raiders will reportedly pay a transfer fee to confirm the signing of Morgan Smithies for the 2024 season.
A 22-year-old forward, Smithies made his debut for the Wigan Warriors in 2019 then aged just 19 and has taken the Super League by storm, going on to play 110 matches for the club.
But his time at the Warriors, who recently beat the Catalans Dragons in the grand final of the 2023 season, could be coming to an end with both News Corp and the Canberra Times reporting the Raiders will secure his signature.
The key detail left to be worked out is how much the transfer fee from the Australian capital to Wigan for his release will be given he is contracted at the English club until the end of 2025. It would only be then that the Raiders could engage with Smithies and his management over the finer points of the deal.
Able to play at either lock or second-row, he could pose as a part of the solution to a number of Raiders' problems which are just around the corner.
Making his international debut earlier this year for England, the talented forward could find himself either in line to replace fellow countryman Elliott Whitehead when he retires at the end of 2024, or move to the lock position where the Raiders have used Corey Horsburgh throughout 2023.
The red-headed forward has become one of the best in the game, but there is still a school of thought which suggests he will join Joseph Tapine in the front-row when Josh Papalii retires.
That could leave the Raiders looking for a second-rower and a lock forward at the same time, with Smithies fitting the mold of a potentially key player moving forward for Ricky Stuart's Raiders who qualified for the finals in 2023 but were bounced out in the opening week by the red-hot Newcastle Knights.
