Newcastle Knights aren't in the market for a frontrow replacement despite confirmation Samoan international James Gavet has signed with English Super League club Huddersfield.
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Gavet had a season remaining on his Knights contract but has opted to bail out early for the added security of an extra one year deal in the UK.
The Knights are yet to officially announce his departure but his signing has already been trumpeted on the Giants' website.
Giants coach and former Knights assistant Simon Woolford declared his signing a "major coup" for the club with a number of other Super League clubs also said to be chasing his signature.
Even before Gavet's decision to leave, the Knights had been linked to ex-Dragons and Penrith prop Trent Merrin but the club's player list manager Troy Pezet said there will be no new frontrow signing for next season.
"Good luck to Jimmy - it's good for him and his family to pick up a two year deal over there,"Pezet said.
"He is a genuine fella who was a really good influence for us on and off the field. He'll free up a little bit of salary cap money but we feel like we already have enough middle forwards so we're not looking for any more."
No talk of Tiger
Disgruntled backrower Ryan Matterson wants out of the Wests Tigers and is being shopped around to a number of NRL clubs. Just don't expect the Knights to feature among his possible suitors.
While an outside back and edge backrower remained the club's main recruitment targets for next season with currently four spots to fill on the roster, we're told Matterson has not even been spoken about.
Sharks utility Kurt Capewell, who the club held talks with and were very keen on initially, has also dropped off the radar somewhat because of his asking price.
Whether that changes if unwanted hooker Danny Levi finds a new home and his $350,000 salary for next year is suddenly freed up remains to be seen. The club is still confident Levi will reach a deal with a rival before next season kicks off.
"There is still going to be plenty of movement and there are still clubs out there in need of a hooker," one source told us.
Dropping anchor
The new-look Knights coaching and support staff will get fully acquainted and stuck into detailed planning for the 2020 season when they spend a couple of days early next week at the Wests Group-owned Anchorage Resort at Port Stephens.
Head coach Adam O'Brien and assistant David Furner, who will have the defensive reins, have spent the past week at Knights headquarters getting the ball rolling.
New attacking coach Willie Peters, who was at South Sydney under Wayne Bennett last season, arrives back this weekend from a Bali holiday and will be on deck for the first time next week.
Staying in-house
It's called keeping it in the 'family'.
When former Knights marketing manager Jarrod Johnstone left the club a few years back to re-join the Sydney Roosters as chief operating officer, he sold his house in Charlestown to former Rooster and newly recruited Knights winger at the time Shaun Kenny-Dowall.
But now that SKD has joined English club Hull KR, he is renting his house out. His new tenants, Knights coach Adam O'Brien and his wife Sharyn, moved in earlier this week.
Todd's rebuild
New Wests Rosellas coach Todd Lowrie is on a hiding to nothing in his new gig with the Newcastle RL defending premiers.
Lowrie was appointed for two years earlier this week as Matt Lantry's replacement following one of the most successful seasons in the club's history.
But he comes in facing the prospect of having to rebuild his squad largely from within after five stars from their dominant first grade grandfinal win over Cessnock - Alex Langbridge, Chad O'Donnell, Pat Mata'utia, Brad Tighe and Mark Taufua - either departed or retired.
After making grandfinals in all four grades, Rosellas officials say they are keen to promote their local talent next season rather then buy in higher profile recruits.