Good News:Turuva happy at Penrith:Unveils His Mind To Panthers…
Off-contract flyer Sunia Turuva admits it would be incredibly hard to leave Penrith, saying his priority is to stay with the three-time premiers as talks begin with rivals.
Turuva is one of nine Panthers who will be off contract at the end of this year, as the club continue their never-ending battle with retaining talent under the salary cap.
In the past fortnight, Penrith have re-signed centres Taylan May and Izack Tago on bigger-money deals, leaving Turuva in a precarious position.
A report this week claimed Turuva’s management were hopeful of earning far more than the $350,000 offered by Penrith to keep the 2023 Dally M rookie of the year.
The Panthers have long taken a position of being a club that will not budge on offers, given the delicate position of their cap and the upgrades required each year.
The exits of Apisai Koroisau, Stephen Crichton and Viliame Kikau, and the impending departure of Jarome Luai are testament to that approach.
But fresh off scoring a hat-trick in Thursday night’s 22-16 win over the Sydney Roosters, Turuva said it had dawned on him he did not want to leave the club.
“Straight after the game, that hit me,” Turuva said.
“I want to be part of this team. It’s a special group we’ve got here. No matter who steps into the jersey.