Wayne Bennett says the Dolphins have the salary cap firepower to land any big-name players that become available over the next few months.
The Dolphins have signed 26 players from teenage prodigies through to seasoned internationals, including 18 players who already have NRL experience.
The club has managed to do this in just nine months, despite the average NRL club generally only signing three or four new players each season.
Bennett has always said the Dolphins would be taking a considered approach to recruitment by ensuring they were signing the right type of players for the right amount.
But he said the Dolphins still had plenty of space left in their salary cap to get some important deals done before they debut in the pan66.competition next year.
And while off-season salary cap budgets will be tight at other clubs, finding the dollars to land big-money players will not be an issue for the Dolphins.
“What we have paid for our players has been good value for them and good value for us,” said the Dolphins’ head coach.
But we have got a fair bit left in the cap to get those players that we are looking for.
“So we won’t have the excuse that we can’t afford that bloke if he is the right bloke.”
Bennett said the club had always taken a long-term view about on the squad and that is evidenced by the opposite ends of the Dolphins’ roster.
While Storm trio Felise Kaufusi and Kenny and Jesse Bromwich will set immediate standards for the club, the Dolphins have also gone out and landed their next generation of stars such as Australian Schoolboys Isaiya Katoa and Michael Roberts as well as under-19 stars Mason Teague and Jack Bostock.
“I’m pretty happy with where we are at,” said Bennett.
“We still have good options out there – we just have to make the right decisions.
“We want to have a competitive team next year, but at the same time we want to have a string of players coming through over the next four or five years here that will be wonderful players for us.”
