Dolphins in talks with Morgan Knowles about NRL switch

Morgan Knowles may be making a switch to the NRL, with reports emerging that the Dolphins are in conversation with the Super League player.

Knowles has a relationship with Dolphins coach Kristian Woolf, having won three titles under his leadership at St Helens between 2020 and 2022.

It is this prior connection that is understood to be the foundation of a potential move south by the second-rower.

This was confirmed by Dolphins CEO Terry Reader, who gave a statement on the 28-year-old’s status on Wednesday.

“Woolfy coached him and they won three premierships together at St Helens,” he said.

“He wants to test himself in the NRL.

“There is interest to talk to him but that’s where it is at the moment.

“We are always interested in good players, especially if they want to play for us.

“We’ll have a chat and see what happens.”

The addition of Knowles would be a boost to the Dolphins’ stocks heading into the 2025 season, particularly considering a potential acquisition of Dylan Brown does not appear to be going through.

The club had expressed interest in recruiting the pivot for next season, but Reader dismissed any prospect of the trade happening.

“Dylan Brown is contracted to Parramatta for seven years on a salary over $1 million and I can’t see him leaving Parramatta,” he said.

“We’ve had no formal chats with him.

“The way we’ve managed our salary cap, our biggest focus is re-signing the players we have. We’ve got a few players coming off-contract.

“When you look at the players in our spine, we’re very comfortable with who we’ve got and our priority is to re-sign those guys.”

Heading into the 2025 NRL season, the Dolphins sit on the second-to-last line of outright betting across most rugby league bookmakers.

Neds is paying a long $51 for the Redcliffe-based club to claim its maiden premiership, alongside the likes of the Gold Coast Titans and even trailing perennial wooden-spooners the Wests Tigers.

The Dolphins play their first match of the season on Friday, March 7, where they are $2.35 to beat the South Sydney Rabbitohs at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.

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