The Rabbitohs are set to extend veteran five-eighth Cody Walker in a move that will likely see the club make a “brutal” call on Lewis Dodd before the English recruit has played a game.
Walker, 35, is about to sign a 12-month extension for the 2026 season on a deal reportedly worth around $650,000.
That has implications for the club who have Dodd who has just started his three-year contract and is also earning around $650,000 per season but he’s playing reserve grade.
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Souths’ starting halfback, Jamie Humphries, is on the NRL minimum wage of $150,000 per season but if his form continues that will soon change.
The Rabbitohs only have $150,000 in cap space this season – which is restricting their ability to get Brandon Smith early – and it’s a similar story next year.
It means something has to give and the NRL 360 panel believe that will be Dodd who the club will almost certainly have to pay him to play elsewhere.
“After talking to Souths management today, they’ve indicated that they’ve already kickstarted initial talks in retaining Cody Walker,” Dave Riccio said.
“He’ll be 36 next January but he’s not playing like a 35-year-old, he’s still commanding the ball and running that football side with a rookie in Jamie Humphries beside him.
“Everything indicates that he will be retained on a 12-month deal. He’s worth $650,000 – $700,000 for me.”
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Braith Anasta then asked how that extension would impact the club’s other halves in Humphries and Dodd.
“They’ve got a jigsaw puzzle, you’re 100 per cent spot on. They’ve got Jye Gray in the background too who can play in the halves,” Riccio said.
“And there’s obviously Humphries, he’s on contract for this season and next and while they’ve haven’t gone there yet… at some point they know they’re going to have to have a look at that contract if he continues to progress the way he is.”
James Hooper then addressed the elephant in the room and said the club needed to make a tough decision on Dodd.
“It’s early doors, but they might have to make a hard call on Lewis Dodd,” Hooper said.
“It sounds brutal, he hasn’t even laced a boot and run out in an NRL game but they’ve signed him on a three-year deal.
“I think Kristian Woolf had some interest in him at the Dolphins prior to him signing with Souths, perhaps they try and open that pipeline.”
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“They just bought him. He hasn’t played a game yet,” Anasta responded.
“You’re asking the questions about how it all fits together, I’m just saying if you’ve got a bloke on that amount of money, given what we’ve seen from Humphries I know it’s only early doors but he looks like an NRL player every day of the week,” Hooper said.
Anasta then painted the tough reality Dodd faces.
“No other NRL club is going to want Dodd. You can’t play reserve grade Super League, reserve grade NRL and then have an NRL club (give you a contract), it’s not going to happen,”
“The only chance is if Souths chip in, significantly,” Riccio responded.
“I’m with Hoops, you can’t have a $600,000 reserve grader on your books. But Maybe you can have a $300,000 and you tip in $300,000.”
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