Melbourne Storm star Brandon Smith has been given approval by the club to explore his options after requesting a release.
Smith is contracted until the end of 2022 but has expressed a desire to play hooker fulltime and believe he won't have that opportunity at the Storm.
As such, Smith has committed to the Melbourne club for season 2021 but will explore his options beyond that.
"Brandon is a wonderful player and great person to have around the club," Storm General Manager Football Frank Ponissi said on the club website.
"Given he is now a premiership player, national representative and has been a valuable asset to our team over the last few years, any move will only be considered with appropriate arrangements put in place.
"The Club has shown we are comfortable with negotiating these requests while also maintaining our performance on the field, given we were in the same position with Josh Addo-Carr only 12 months ago.
"We look forward to having Brandon back on the track on January 4 along with his teammates as they prepare for the 2021 season."