Luciano Leilua rang Ricky Stuart to let him know he'd decided to join the Dragons instead of the Green Machine.
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The former North Queensland second-rower wants to be close to his father in Sydney with a return to St George Illawarra the best way to do that.
While the Dragons reportedly were willing to meet Leilua's $900,000-per-season price tag, the Canberra Raiders weren't willing to pay that much for the 27-year-old.
Leilua will immediately join the Dragons on a three-year deal in a return to the club where he began his NRL career.
He's played 123 NRL games across stints at the Dragons, Wests Tigers and Cowboys.
But he'd fallen down the second-row pecking order behind young guns Jeremiah Nanai, Heilum Luki and Kulikefu Finefeuiaki.
Despite having missed out on Leilua, the Raiders have already bolstered their back-row ranks with the pre-season signing of former Panther Zac Hosking.
Hosking will play his first game in lime green on Sunday, having been named on the bench for their final pre-season trial - against the Cowboys at Seiffert Oval.
Raiders captain Elliott Whitehead felt Stuart would use Hosking as an edge forward.
The 34-year-old said he might not play the full 80 minutes given it's his 15th season of first grade - or he could move into the middle at times to allow Hosking to join Hudson Young in the second row.
Whitehead has been impressed with Hosking since his arrival from Penrith, where he was part of the premiers' successful 2023 campaign.
"I think Ricky will put him on an edge. I'm not sure whether I'll come off or go back into the middle for a bit," he said.
"He's brought a lot. He's been at a great club at Penrith. He's brought a lot of experience from what they do over there.
"He's a great signing for us and moving forward he'll be a big part of this club."
Young guns Kaeo Weekes and Ethan Strange will again drive the Green Machine, with Raiders halfback Jamal Fogarty saved for round one.
Fogarty's massively important for Canberra this season, given they'll have a young five-eighth and potentially a young fullback as well.
His leadership in getting the Green Machine around the field will be crucial if they're going to repeat last year's top-eight finish.
Whitehead was confident Fogarty would slot in seamlessly when he returned for their round-one clash against the Knights in Newcastle on March 7.
"He'll just slide straight back in. He's a quality halfback and the main halfback at this club at the moment so he'll slide straight back in come round one," Whitehead said.
"It's something we've worked on all pre-season is our attack.
"We wanted to improve in that aspect from last year and I think we scored 38 points on the weekend, which was a rare find last year.
"So I think it definitely has improved and hopefully we can show that again this weekend."
Whitehead reiterated the Raiders' final trial was a massive chance for young players to lock down round-one roles.
Albert Hopoate's been given a chance to start at fullback against the Cowboys, while Michael Asomua and Xavier Savage will start on the wing.
Plus the obvious opportunity for both Weekes and Strange to make the No.6 jersey their own and join Fogarty in the halves.
Stuart has the luxury of playing veteran Jordan Rapana at either fullback or on the wing depending on need.
Like Fogarty, Rapana has been kept fresh for round one.
"That's a headache for [Stuart]. He's got Chevy Stewart as well, who I thought performed really well on the weekend," Whitehead said.
"He'll get another shot second half. They get their opportunity this week to show they're ready to play round one."
NRL PRE-SEASON TRIAL
Sunday: Canberra Raiders v North Queensland Cowboys at Seiffert Oval, 3pm.
Raiders squad: 1. Albert Hopoate, 2. Michael Asomua, 3. Matthew Timoko, 4. James Schiller, 5. Xavier Savage, 6. Kaeo Weekes, 7. Ethan Strange, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Danny Levi, 10. Emre Guler, 11. Hudson Young, 12. Elliott Whitehead (c), 13. Morgan Smithies. Interchange: 14. Tom Starling, 15. Nick Cotric, 16. Trey Mooney, 17. Jed Stuart, 18. Chevy Stewart, 19. Adam Cook, 20. Peter Hola, 21. Mitch Henderson, 22. Zac Hosking, 23. Simi Sasagi, 24. Pasami Saulo, 25. Ata Mariota, 26. Hohepa Puru, 27. Zac Woolford.
Cowboys squad: 1. Scott Drinkwater, 2. Kyle Feldt, 3. Valentine Holmes, 4. Zac Laybutt, 5. Murray Taulagi, 6. Tom Dearden, 7. Chad Townsend, 8. Jordan McLean, 9. Reece Robson, 10. Jason Taumalolo, 11. Heilum Luki, 12. Jeremiah Nanai, 13. Reuben Cotter. Interchange: 14. Jake Granville, 15. Griffin Neame, 16. Coen Hess, 17. Sam McIntyre, 18. Thomas Mikaele, 19. Tomas Chester, 20. Semi Valemei, 21. Kulikefu Finefeuiaki, 22. Jack Gosiewski, 23. Jake Clifford.