Powerbrokers in Brisbane are faced with a serious recruitment and retention dilemma at the end of 2025.
The Broncos are reportedly short on room in their salary cap after a fresh set of contracts were handed out to Adam Reynolds, Kotoni Staggs and Blake Mozer.
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The Courier Mail is reporting that the club has identified four players who will be given the rest of this season to earn a new deal.
Those players include Kobe Hetherington, Jack Gosiewski, Corey Jensen and Cory Paix - who have all featured regularly in the NRL side.
Hetherington is the most likely candidate to be retained, with the lock-forward notching up nearly 100-games for the club since his debut in 2021.
The 26-year-old complements their marquee forwards nicely - having a smaller frame, he offers a point of difference to Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan.
He is also a handy link-man on set plays and a reliable defender, averaging 94.2 per cent tackle efficiency on the season.
Paix is the first player that the Broncos would likely be forced to axe, given that they've already signed Mozer to be the long-term solution to their dummy-half position.
Despite being out with injury to start the year, Ben Hunt will step into the number nine jersey upon his return.
This would likely relegate Paix to the bench and limit his opportunities to impress the Broncos front office enough to earn another deal.
It would seem that Gosiewski might be the odd man out in the second-row rotation heading into next season.
The 31-year-old was all the rage in the pre-season, earning himself a starting role in the back-row for Round one.
However, a fractured arm halted his momentum and has likely sealed his fate in Red Hill, given the crop of young and exciting edge forwards in the Broncos ranks.
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Jensen may also be on the move in 2026, despite seemingly being in Michael Maguire's good graces in recent weeks, having been promoted to the starting side.
The 31-year-old has been a reliable option at prop since his arrival to the club in 2021, however, given the money that the Broncos are spending on other middle forwards such as Carrigan and Haas, he may become a salary cap casualty through no fault of his own.
The Broncos play the Bulldogs to kick-off Round 18, with all four-men auditioning for contracts being named in the lineup, giving them a great opportunity to submit their case.