How Broncos will justify Gillett salary cap relief bid

Brisbane will tender several medical opinions and footage of the seemingly innocuous incident that led to Matt Gillett's early retirement in a bid to secure the best part of $2 million in salary cap relief.

A day after South Sydney star Sam Burgess was forced into retirement by a debilitating shoulder infection, Gillett made his own emotional announcement that he was retiring on doctors' advice that his right shoulder is "beyond repair".

Should the NRL grant a full exemption for the remaining three years of Gillett's contract, his estimated $650,000 salary would provide serious clout in the Broncos looming retention battle for gun back-rower David Fifita, as well as their pursuit of Storm halfback Brodie Croft.

NRL.com understands that both Kotoni Staggs and Alex Glenn have also agreed in principle to two-year contract extensions as Anthony Seibold looks to regenerate the Broncos roster.

The deals are expected to be formalised once both players return to Australia, with Glenn currently overseas holidaying and Staggs in camp with Tonga.

Meanwhile post-season scans, doctors' reports and documentation that surgery would not repair Gillett's shoulder will all be put forward to the NRL as part of the Broncos application for him to be medically retired.

It's understood that digitised medical documents clearing Gillett to return from both a shoulder reconstruction at the end of 2018, and the broken neck he sustained in round one of that season will also be provided to illustrate his career-ending injury stems from a round 23 loss this year to the Rabbitohs in this incident.

"When we played Souths at home I made a line break and offloaded to Kotoni on the inside and (he) scored the try," Gillett said on Thursday, recalling the 76th minute incident in a 22-20 defeat to Souths in late-August.

"At the time I obviously hurt it as you do, you go through your career and have injuries and bumps and stuff like that.

"From that game things were a struggle from there on. Trying to lift weights, obviously playing a contact sport and using your right shoulder, putting your body on the line, that was pretty difficult to do week-in, week-out for the club.

"In my mind I thought something was up. I've had two shoulder operations and other injuries but not to the extent that when I saw medical staff they explained to me, with a lot of big words in there, but I was shocked to find (out) the extent of it."

NRL CEO Todd Greenberg said salary cap auditor Richard Gardham will put the Broncos medical retirement application for Gillett through the same processes as the Burgess submission and the recently approved request for Wests Tigers prop Ben Matulino.

"I don’t foreshadow any issues but we will do the same thing, we’ll run through the same process and same rules and make the same determination according to the facts," Greenberg said.

"The same principles will apply."

Gillett played out the final three games of Brisbane's season, including a devastating 58-0 loss to Parramatta that doubled as his 200th, and ultimately final game for the club.

"I had a scan pretty shortly after the (season ended) and sat down with the staff a week later," Gillett said.

"It was a no-brainer at the end of the day. I had to make sure I was comfortable with it.

"The last thing I wanted to do was give the game away due to injuries."

Brisbane remain confident of their ability to re-sign Fifita despite a slew of interest from cashed up rivals led by the Roosters, Rabbitohs and Warriors.

Still just 19, Fifita's close-knit family base in Queensland and bond with childhood mate Payne Haas loom as significant selling points for the Broncos, as well as his rapid progress during Seibold's first season at Red Hill.

Fifita is not due to return to pre-season training until late-November after sustaining a fractured eye socket while captaining the Junior Kangaroos against France last Friday.

He and Seibold ended up driving back to Brisbane together from Sydney over the weekend, with Seibold due to return to Queensland anyway and Fifita unable to fly due to the strain air cabin pressure would place on his injury.