Roosters on the verge of Sonny Bill Williams signing as he considers NRL return for final four rounds and finals
Sonny Bill Williams is on the verge of a stunning comeback to the Sydney Roosters this year, agreeing to consider a return to the Tricolours for the last four rounds of the season and the club's finals push for a third successive title.
Sources close to negotiations told the Herald the 34-year-old is seriously contemplating moving his family from Manchester in the coming days after the Roosters strongly indicated they wanted him at their club if he had any desire to return to the NRL following
Toronto's exit from the Super League.
Williams is expected to provide the Roosters with a decision by the end of the week, with conversations continuing today.
Roosters supremo Nick Politis coincidently had lunch with Williams' agent Khoder Nasser in Sydney on Wednesday, but it was a pre-arranged lunch that also included fellow player agent Steve Gillis and News Corp journalist Phil Rothfield.
The Roosters are so keen for Williams to return to the club that discussions have been had around the back-rower potentially staying on next season as part of the coaching staff if his deal with Toronto Wolfpack, worth $5 million in 2021, falls through.
Williams is not an Australian citizen, so would need a special exemption from the federal government to fly straight into Australia for a 14-day quarantine period. The alternative would require him to fly home to New Zealand for a 14-day mandatory isolation before undergoing the same biosecurity measures when arriving in Australia.
The Roosters are also forecasting two weeks of training and conditioning before throwing him onto the field, leaving the former All Blacks star with about four games under his belt before the finals should he agree to return. It's understood the hit-and-run nature of the challenge appeals to Williams, who is in the final stages of his glittering career.
St George Illawarra,
who were considering using salary cap dispensation available for Jack de Belin to lure Williams to the red V, pulled out of the hunt for Williams' services on Wednesday afternoon due to the logistical complexities around his return and the timing issues linked with their lock forward's court hearing.
The Dragons' withdrawal has left the New Zealand Warriors, Canterbury Bulldogs and Roosters scrambling for his services, but Williams is only interested in playing for the Tricolours.
The Roosters would be able to pay Sonny Bill Williams about $100,000 to $150,000 for up to eight games, but he would see only half of that money given the salary cap reduction and the 52 per cent cut in player pay as a result of COVID-19. He would also receive 55 per cent of his $5 million contract with the Wolfpack for 2020.
Williams has also attracted interest from rugby union clubs around the world, including Major League Rugby club Rugby United New York and several European clubs, while there is also an appetite for him to square off against Paul Gallen in the ring later in the year or early next year. Williams' return would generate massive interest and publicity for the NRL.
The Roosters already have the maximum 30 players on their roster, and have begun talks around moving someone on to accommodate Williams' potential arrival. Loaning a player to the Warriors, as they did earlier in the season with Poasa Faamausili, will not help matters given that a loaned player will remain on the Roosters' books.
Drew Hutchison, Lachlan Lam, Matt Ikuvalu and Asu Kepaoa are all off contract at season's end and would likely come into the firing line should the Roosters need to move a player on to turn a Williams homecoming into a reality.
While the Roosters have plenty of money in the salary cap because of Latrell Mitchell's departure for South Sydney, they had also budgeted on forward-paying parts of certain players' salaries to help their 2021 cap situation, including the retention of the Morris brothers.
The NRL has pushed back its traditional June 30 transfer deadline to August 3 this year as a result of the interruption to its season. Williams doesn't have to arrive at the Roosters by August 3 but he will have to sign the contract within the next 12 days.
The Roosters' forward stocks have been heavily depleted, with Victor Radley and Sam Verills out for the season, while Angus Crichton will also miss up to six weeks with a knee injury. Despite the two season-ending injuries, Radley and Verills will still be considered part of the club's 30 available players.
Roosters captain Boyd Cordner believes Williams should return to the tricolours after winning a premiership with the side in 2013.
"If he’s coming back, I’d love him to play for the Roosters, that is for sure," he said on Wednesday. "He’s a freak and the ultimate professional. I think we’ve seen him at the top of his game whether he boxes...plays union and then his stint with us in 2013 and 2014...it’s just what he does, he’s at the top of his game all the time."
Roosters veteran Mitch Aubusson said the squad still uses techniques and skills brought in by Williams from 2013 and 2014.
"It's his preparation, it's his diet...he’s at the forefront of doing that stuff," Aubusson said. "What he has done for this club is outstanding, I’m sure Sonny - at whatever capacity - would be welcome."
