EXCLUSIVE: 'Very interesting' positional switch floated as Val Holmes closes in on club move
Phil Gould has admitted "the rumours are too strong" when it comes to Valentine Holmes leaving the Cowboys as he weighs up a potential move to the Dragons.
Reports emerged over the weekend that the 29-year-old could be granted an early release by North Queensland and link back up with Shane Flanagan next season.
The pair were at the forefront of Cronulla's drought-breaking premiership in 2016 and built a strong bond prior to Holmes moving overseas to pursue an NFL career.
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When that didn't pan out, the Maroons speedster signed with the Cowboys and is now on substantial money in Townsville, which has led to question marks from Billy Slater over the reason for the club looking to move him on at season's end.
Valentine Holmes could be on the move next year. Getty
"It's an interesting one," he said on Nine's Billy Slater Podcast.
"I know they have been trying to instil some of that North Queensland culture into the Cowboys and they are doing a pretty good job up there. This must be a salary cap thing, I would imagine Val is on a fair bit of money and the salary cap restraints hits everyone.
"I can only imagine that is the reason behind the club looking to move forward. They've got young centre [Jaxon] Purdue coming through, he looks like a real talent.
"They've got some thoughts on the future and told Val that he can look elsewhere."
Holmes has played close to 200 first grade games, as well as 19 Origins and 21 Tests, making him one of the most high-profile players in the NRL.
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St George Illawarra have already emerged as the front-runner to sign the State of Origin star and according to Gould, he could fix a number of issues at the club.
"The rumours are too strong," he said on Wide World Of Sports' Six Tackles With Gus.
"Shane's obviously looking for some players to bring in and he's got history with him.
"Val being a great goalkicker too, Zac Lomax has scored a lot of points for them. It will be interesting to see what position he is considering playing him - he was probably the world's best winger at the time [at the Sharks].
Shane Flanagan is looking for marquee talent to join the Dragons. Getty
"But it's very interesting with the Dragons dropping (fullback) Tyrell Sloan on the weekend, I'm not sure what they are thinking for the future and what the attraction would be for Val Holmes ... at club level he could play fullback.
"I think the goalkicking is a big factor, losing Lomax … for me, there's too many people saying he is going to the Dragons for it not to be true."
Lomax will head to Parramatta next year after agitating for a release in Wollongong, despite playing the best football of his career under Flanagan in 2024.
Holmes' potential move to the Dragons would give them another experienced star after they managed to poach Damien Cook from the Rabbitohs on a two-year deal.
