Wests Tigers have shot down a daring bid from the Melbourne Storm to trade under-fire hooker Brandon Smith with highly touted forward Stefano Utoikamanu for next season, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
It’s another sign of just how livid the Storm are Smith over the recent appearance of the Roosters-bound superstar on the YKTR podcast.
Storm recruitment manager Paul Bunn approached the Tigers this week, offering Smith on a one-year deal.
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That prompted a discussion between new Tigers director of football Tim Sheens and Storm coach Craig Bellamy, but the negotiations ended abruptly when Melbourne revealed they wanted Utoikamanu in return.
It was fresh in the Tigers’ minds that Smith had made it clear to the joint-venture club several weeks ago that he didn’t want to speak, indicating that he wanted to join a top-four team.
In an indication of the talent Utoikamanu possesses, the 21-year-old was selected in the Blues’ State of Origin squad for third game of the 2021 series.
The Tigers announced Friday that they had locked up premiership-winning Panthers hooker Apisai Koroisau on a two-year deal from 2023.
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Felise Kaufusi (Dolphins), Reed Mahoney (Bulldogs) and Isaiah Papali’i (Tigers) are among the high-prolife players to have finalised deals with rival clubs during the current transfer window, which opened on November 1.
The deal between Smith and the Roosters is yet to be made official, but the New Zealand Test hooker all but revealed he was set to sign with the Tricolours in his appearance on the podcast.
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Smith said on the podcast that, on a tour of the Roosters during this off-season, he had looked at a Roosters jumper and thought, “I want to win a premiership in that jersey”.
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