The stunning signing of Jarome Luai by the PNG Chiefs could trigger mass movement across the NRL including at his former club, with Penrith captain Isaah Yeo revealing nine top-liners at the Panthers were set to test the open market from November 1.
Yeo’s comments came as ARL Commission chairman Peter V’landys confirmed the Chiefs would have tax-free status for at least their first 10 years.
Existing teams are rapidly coming to terms with the huge bargaining chip at the new side’s disposal, with club chief executives discussing the PNG tax concessions during a phone hook-up on Wednesday.
Luai’s decision to join the Chiefs on a three-year, tax-free $1.2 million-a-season contract when they enter the competition in 2028 has rocked the code, leaving clubs waiting for the next domino to fall.
The Wests Tigers co-captain could potentially be joined in Port Moresby by former teammates at Penrith and his acquisition by the Chiefs shapes as a valuable recruitment tool.
Yeo, Nathan Cleary, Brian To’o, Liam Martin, Moses Leota, Mitch Kenny, Paul Alamoti, Blaize Talagi and Isaiah Papali’i are all free to negotiate with other teams on November 1 for the 2028 season and beyond and are poised to do just that.
“I think we probably all will. I’m not sure what the club’s doing in that regard but I feel like I’ll certainly be open-minded in that regard,” NSW Blues captain Yeo said.
“I’ve got a young family. I’ve got three kids and obviously I’d love to stay a one-club player but I understand there’s also a business side to it as well.”
Asked about his future, Blues and Panthers winger To’o said: “I’ll just leave it to my managers. That’s my manager’s job to do all that.
“That won’t come until the end of the year. I’ve just got to play consistent footy week in, week out.”
As clubs have digested the Luai news – and his courting with a private jet paid for by the PNG government – questions have been asked about how long the historic expansion side will be able to offer players tax-free salaries.
“At a minimum it goes for the 10 years of the agreement,” V’landys said. “While there is an agreement in place, that is a material aspect of our agreement with the [Australian and PNG] governments.
“The clubs were well aware of this two years ago. It’s nothing new. I don’t blame the clubs because each club looks after the best interests of that club. My job is to look after the best interest of the game as a whole. It’s going to do really good things for the game and the clubs will get the benefits in the end anyway.”
The tax-free status afforded to the NRL’s 19th team gives them far greater spending power than others including fellow newcomer Perth Bears, who join the league in 2027, but has been seen as a vital incentive for them to build a competitive squad.
Luai admitted a wage inflated by paying zero tax was an appealing aspect of the PNG pitch and as the Chiefs attempt to convince others to relocate to the developing Pacific nation, it is an undeniable selling point.
V’landys said it was important for the new team to be a success and because of its ability to bring harmony in a country with hundreds of different tribes and languages.
The tax-free element of the $600 million Australian government deal that has delivered the NRL team was devised initially to lure former players to PNG to work as development officers in schools, V’landys said.
Only 62 per cent of children complete primary school PNG and 27 per cent in rural areas, according to Unicef.
“What we’ve discovered if you take a rugby league player and stick him in a school, [the children] will turn up,” V’landys said.
“Everyone thinks [the money] is going to the NRL team – most of it is going to education, development and schools. We’re going to put a lot of people in their schools … in order to achieve that we wanted to make it attractive to go over and live there to make it tax-free. But naturally that flowed on with the players.”
Chris Barrett is a senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former South-East Asia correspondent for the Herald and The Age.Connect via X or email.