Cronulla captain Cameron McInnes has conceded salary cap pressure could squeeze him out of the Sharks, declaring he would be open to playing for any NRL club in 2027.
The injured forward's preference is to remain at Cronulla, who reached a grand final qualifier last year and once again rate among premiership contenders this season.
But as he recovers from a second anterior cruciate ligament injury at 32, and with seven members of that preliminary final side also off-contract, McInnes is realistic.
He points to Penrith as evidence winning rosters inevitably face salary cap pressure, with Jarome Luai, Api Koroisau and Viliame Kikau among key men squeezed out during the Panthers' four consecutive premiership seasons.
"Guys start to have to leave, don't they? That's probably where we're at now," McInnes told AAP.
"There's about eight or nine guys in the starting 17 that are all off-contract. I wouldn't imagine all nine will be staying, that's just a reality.
"That could be me (leaving), it might not be. I'd love to stay, but I'm also a realist. I'm at my third club and each time I thought I'd never leave.
"You understand that that can happen. I don't want it to, but if it does, I want to keep playing footy."
The Sharks have not yet opened contract discussions with McInnes, wanting him to prioritise his recovery from the ACL injury he suffered in August.
But it's understood Cronulla are keen to sit down with McInnes to talk through an extension once he is back playing.
While there would be temptation for McInnes to accept a lower salary and remain at the Sharks, he has a family of five to think about and is willing to test the open market.
"You can take unders but I guess it needs to make sense for everybody, it's not just about you," he said.
"If I was a single guy, probably decisions are different. But I'm not."
With captaincy and State of Origin experience, and a reputation as one of the NRL's hardest workers, McInnes looms as an obvious target for expansion side Perth.
The 18th team's inaugural roster does not yet feature a player with more than 200 games of experience.
McInnes has not yet held formal talks with the Bears but will consider offers from any NRL team.
At his age, he recognises those offers are unlikely to come until he's back playing, but feels he has at least a couple more years left to play.
"I'd play anywhere, honestly, I would," the 32-year-old said.
"I haven't heard anything from anyone to be fair, but like I say I'm not stressing about it right now because I just need to get back on the field."
McInnes is meeting with renowned ACL specialist Tim McGrath on Monday for a series of tests and will have a clearer picture of his return-to-play timeline then.
Currently, he expects to be back on the field between rounds three and 12.
"That's quite a big range there but that's about where it's at," he said.
"There's always doom and gloom (with an ACL injury) but I just back myself, I've worked hard as everyone does."
