{"id":875832,"date":"2026-09-01T05:08:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T05:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/875832\/"},"modified":"2026-09-01T05:08:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T05:08:13","slug":"nrl-2026-dolphins-questioned-over-call-to-let-kodi-nikorima-leave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/875832\/","title":{"rendered":"NRL 2026: Dolphins questioned over call to let Kodi Nikorima leave"},"content":{"rendered":"

The decision to let Dolphins veteran Kodi Nikorima leave at the end of the season has been widely panned, with the classy five-eighth paying tribute to a current Souths star for elevating his game to scary heights.<\/p>\n

Nikorima, 32, spent time at the Broncos, Warriors and Rabbitohs before he returned to Queensland as a key member of the Dolphins\u2019 inaugural squad.<\/p>\n

He has spent the past four seasons at the club and has formed a potent halves combination with Isaiya Katoa, but that partnership will end in a few weeks when he heads south on a deal with the Dragons.<\/p>\n

The decision to sign English veteran George Williams was questioned at the time and seems even crazier given how well Nikorima is playing, but the Dragons aren\u2019t complaining with the five-eighth one of several great gets for the Red V in 2027.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was their best player in the first half,\u201d former playmaker Greg Alexander said on SEN after watching Nikorima dominate the Roosters.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like his ball playing and he\u2019s always been a great runner, but his ability to just hold the defence up, it was on show on Saturday.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you\u2019re thinking, wow, George Williams, seriously?<\/p>\n

\u201cNikorima, although 32, has lost no speed and is a better player now than he ever has been.\u201d<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll know in a year whether the Dolphins made the right call, with money playing a key role in the move. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was obviously very tough,\u201d Nikorima replied when asked about his decision to leave. <\/p>\n

\u201cI came here as an inaugural player. Brisbane is home, my family\u2019s from here, my kids were born here, so it was obviously a tough decision. But it\u2019s a business at the end of the day, and hopefully we can just go out on a high this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Katoa is widely regarded as the game\u2019s next great halfback, Nikorima has been the attacking spark this season which will see the Dolphins play finals footy for the first time.<\/p>\n

The crafty playmaker has carved up on their lethal left edge and has already set up a career-high 22 tries, with Nikorima looking a lot like Rabbitohs legend Cody Walker who always appears to have time with the ball. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s one of my favourite players,\u201d Nikorima said, having spent the 2022 season with Walker at the Bunnies.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s obviously played a massive part (in my game) whether he knows it or not. <\/p>\n

\u201cI spent that half a year at South Sydney just watching him go about his work. He\u2019s probably the most skilful player I\u2019ve ever played with. <\/p>\n

\u201cI went down there thinking that he was this player who just loves playing off the cuff, but he\u2019s actually a lot more structured than people think.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe loves his footy, he\u2019s got a great IQ and a great understanding of the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cWatching him go about his work through training, the reps that he puts in with his ball playing, I tried to take that to the Dolphins and it\u2019s just pleasing that that\u2019s starting to come off at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dolphins are a genuine premiership threat this season given their ability to score points from anywhere on the field, but it\u2019s their defence that could be the trump card in the finals.<\/p>\n

At 174cm and 82kg, Nikorima is an obvious target in defence. But he\u2019s making a career-high 19.9 tackles this year and has reduced his misses from 12 months ago, with former coach Wayne Bennett playing a key role in his improvement. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe felt we were one of the best attacking teams last year, but I think what\u2019s helped us this year is the fact that we\u2019re able to defend our mistakes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe obviously know that defence wins games and it was a talking point in our pre-season, a big focus. We know we can attack, but if we can hold teams at bay and give ourselves opportunities, that\u2019s a win for us.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnder Wayne, he\u2019s always making me do extras. He did it when I was at the Broncos as well. <\/p>\n

\u201cI guess for myself it\u2019s just making sure that I\u2019m ticking every box during the week to make myself physically right for the game and then going out there and putting my body on the line. <\/p>\n

\u201cUnderstanding the importance of defence, I think just a whole mindset around it has changed this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Originally published as Greg Alexander questions why the Dolphins didn\u2019t keep Kodi Nikorima<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The decision to let Dolphins veteran Kodi Nikorima leave at the end of the season has been 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