Bulldogs star Matt Burton says he is willing to stay at centre and potentially earn less money – if it means he is enjoying his footy without the pressure of being a marquee playmaker – as he delays any decision on his next contract until after the season.
Burton has made a high-profile switch from five-eighth back to centre in Canterbury’s ever-revolving backline, and is set to line up on the right edge against his old Panthers teammates in Friday’s must-win western Sydney derby.
The laconic 26-year-old’s future beyond 2027 – both positionally and in the Bulldogs roster – has been a focus all season.
With the NRL’s salary cap set to rise around 15 per cent under the new broadcast deal in 2028 and quality playmakers in short supply, Burton could command around $1 million if he goes to market on November 1.
He has regularly been linked with incoming expansion franchise Perth Bears, to the point the club and their coach Mal Meninga were fined a combined $40,000 when he identified Burton as a potential signing target, in breach of the NRL’s anti-tampering rules.
Burton’s manager has been in regular dialogue with the Bulldogs since extension talks were first broached in April.
But Canterbury boss Phil Gould also shone a spotlight on the issue around Burton’s salary when he told James Graham’s The Bye Round Podcast: “Over the next 18 months we’ve got to work out what we pay Matt Burton.”
“If he plays centre, what are you going to pay him? If he plays five-eighth, what are you going to pay him? Well, he’s got some decisions to make.”
Burton acknowledged on Monday that he had considered that question himself. And he is not particularly fazed by potentially limiting his earning capacity by playing centre or staying at Canterbury, given Lachlan Galvin and Mitch Woods have been pegged as the club’s long-term halves.
“A little bit, it does [come up], but at the moment I’m just happy playing footy and I think sometimes being happy is worth more than what the money is,” Burton said.
“I’ll just see what happens and leave it until November… I just told my manager that we’ll leave it until the end of the year. I’m happy playing footy here at the moment and I don’t want to make that a distraction. We need to win these last few games so that’s my main priority.”
The NRL’s most recent salary cap benchmarking document, which is used to help clubs ascertain player values based on market values, pegs the game’s top-earning five-eighths at an average salary of $923,386.
The figure is based on the average wages of the five highest-paid No.6s and clocks in at almost $100,000 a year more than the game’s five richest centres – whose average salary amounted to $839,216.
Burton won Dally M centre of the year and the 2021 premiership in his final season with Penrith, and has spoken openly of being freed up since his mid-season move out of the halves.
Coach Cameron Ciraldo has said he, too, saw an instant change in Burton since he and skipper Stephen Crichton swapped roles midway through a tense mid-year win over Manly.
“I love both positions but I’ve been enjoying my time out there in the centres,” Burton said. “It’s been good just to take a step back and just do all the little things right in the game.
“[Ciraldo] just pulled me aside and said I need to work on a few things in my game. Kick chase was a big one and it’s pretty much a non-negotiable out there in the centres, so I got that back into my game.
“And giving energy to the side with that, then just chasing little effort areas in defence. I feel like that’s come back in my game after moving out there as well… It took a bit of the pressure off me and I [could] just do the simple things well.
“I’m a bit happier out there and enjoy the game a bit more. And if you’re happy and everything’s going well, it definitely shows on the field.”
