The Dolphins will make a call in the next month on their next captain and it will come from one of their "Fab Four" forwards in the new leadership group.
The standard wisdom is 24-year-old warrior lock Tom Gilbert will be given the honour after foundation skipper Jesse Bromwich retired at the end of last year.
Gilbert is the favourite but veteran forwards Felise Kaufusi, Kenny Bromwich and Mark Nicholls are all in the leadership group and have stellar credentials of their own.
All of the quartet have the experience, gravitas and respect of the playing group.
Nicholls, 35, did lead the side last year when Jesse Bromwich was unavailable, but he is in the twilight of his career. Kaufusi and Bromwich, who won premierships together at Melbourne, are also closer to the end than the beginning of their stellar contributions as players.
Gilbert appears the hot favourite in a long-term sense but he has not played an NRL game since May 2023 due to a shoulder injury before doing his ACL in last season's trials.
It is why any announcement about the captaincy is not expected until late in February and once all the trials are done and dusted. Gilbert has set round one as a goal for his return and the coming month will be crucial in his development.
At this stage the Dolphins have Gilbert slated to play in the NRL's Pre-Season Challenge clash against Gold Coast on February 22 in Redcliffe.
New coach Kristian Woolf is yet to make a call on the captaincy but Nicholls said he would be proud to play under the leadership of Queensland representative Gilbert.
“Kristian hasn’t given much away," Nicholls said.
“Tom plays footy the way I love.
“I don’t think there’d be any player at the Dolphins that wouldn’t want to follow Tom into battle.
“The way he plays and conducts himself around training is one of the reasons he’s in the leadership group despite his age.
“All the boys would get behind him."
Dolphins CEO Terry Reader also said the decision was far from settled.
“That’s something that’s been talked about but we’re going to get through the trials and see how the guys come together," he said.
“We’ve got a wonderful leadership group and the captain will come from that group."
Reader did say "everything about Tom" made him a strong candidate.
“He’s had two season-ending injuries and just the way he’s done his rehab, come back and how he’s handled himself in the group," he said.
“He’s a wonderful leader when he’s on the field and with what he does off the field.
“The biggest thing to worry about with Tom is getting him on the field. We’ll just be happy to see Tom playing football."
