Canberra Raiders halfback George Williams' preference is to return to England at the end of the NRL season, with Warrington shaping as the most likely destination for the England international.
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But a homesick Williams is contracted to the Green Machine for the 2022 season and Canberra would be well within their rights to dig their heels in and insist he sees out the three-year deal.
While the 26-year-old's former club Wigan have said they'd also be interested in the England international, it's unlikely he'd consider a return at this stage.
He got through the Raiders' captain's run on Friday and looks set to take his place in the halves alongside Jack Wighton for their crucial clash against the Newcastle Knights in Wagga Wagga on Saturday.
Williams' camp will meet with the Canberra hierarchy over the coming weeks to find a solution.
The Raiders were focusing on doing everything they could to make Williams and his pregnant partner Charlotte Lewis happy, including looking to bring their respective mothers down under to help build a support network around the couple.
It's also hoped the Rugby League World Cup goes ahead in England at the end of the year and the couple can visit family and friends then.
The coronavirus pandemic has effectively isolated Williams and his partner on the other side of the world for the past 18 months with international travel shut down.
A major hurdle for a Williams release was the Raiders being able to find a suitable replacement.
The Raiders have been linked to Adam Reynolds, who looks set to depart South Sydney at the end of the season, while Gold Coast half Ash Taylor's another off contract at the end of the year.
Warrington playmaker Gareth Widdop's looking for a return to the NRL, but hasn't attracted much interest.
"We'll get around George. People go through this situation and the club will get around George," Stuart said.
"I've known about this for three weeks so it's not new. We're getting around George and doing everything we can for him and Charley.
"It's not uncommon for people to have homesickness, but it's not a disease - it goes away."
MORE RAIDERS NEWS
Meanwhile, the Raiders were preparing for the possibility of having to fly-in and fly-out for their Magic Round clash against the Canterbury Bulldogs at Lang Park next Saturday.
Raiders chief executive Don Furner said the next 48 hours would likely determine how the round proceeded - with all eight games of the round scheduled to be played in Brisbane.
Furner was part of the NRL's Project Apollo, which was set up to come up with protocols when the pandemic hit last year.
The likelihood of it proceeding as planned was boosted on Friday, with NSW recording no new cases.
A couple of coronavirus cases in Sydney this week put the NRL on alert, with clubs in the Harbour City returning to level-three restrictions and players put back into the Apollo bubble they had in place last year.
It means those players have to go straight to work and then home again, except for a few exceptions.
The Raiders have been largely unaffected, but some restrictions come into effect on game day.
They don't play a game in Sydney until they face Manly at Brookvale on July 8.
Their NSW Cup team can also run out as named in the curtain raiser against the Knights, whereas Sydney clubs have to withdraw their NRL-contracted players from their reserve-grade games.
While the Raiders can't sign autographs and have pictures taken with fans, they have spent the past two days in Wagga Wagga - where they attended a children's rugby league carnival on Thursday.
The game's a sellout, although the capacity's been capped at 7500.
"The next two days are important in Sydney - if it's only those two cases and they're isolated, and everyone else tests negative I imagine it will all go ahead," Furner said.
"If not, possibly, we go back to fly in and out and don't stay in a hotel.
"We'd all be ready for that. I imagine that would happen Monday so there'd be minor changes, but it's not as if we're not used to it and the Bulldogs would have to do the same thing."
NRL ROUND NINE
Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Newcastle Knights at Wagga Wagga, 3pm.
Raiders squad: 1. Caleb Aekins, 2. Bailey Simonsson, 3. Sebastian Kris, 4. Curtis Scott, 5. Jordan Rapana, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. George Williams, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Tom Starling, 10. Emre Guler, 11. Corey Harawira-Naera, 12. Elliott Whitehead (c), 13. Ryan Sutton. Interchange: 14. Siliva Havili, 15. Hudson Young, 16. Corey Horsburgh, 17. Joe Tapine. Reserves: 18. Sam Williams, 20. Matt Timoko.
Knights squad: 1. Kalyn Ponga, 2. Brayden Musgrove, 3. Enari Tuala, 4. Bradman Best, 19. Starford To'a, 6. Kurt Mann, 7. Phoenix Crossland, 8. David Klemmer, 9. Jayden Brailey, 10. Daniel Saifiti, 11. Tyson Frizell, 12. Mitchell Barnett, 13. Connor Watson. Interchange: 14. Sauaso Sue, 15. Jacob Saifiti, 16. Brodie Jones, 17. Pasami Saulo. Reserves: 18. Lachlan Fitzgibbon, 22 Gehamat Shibasaki.