The Papua New Guinea Chiefs have gone on the attack this week with a all-out charm offensive after flipping the script surrounding the NRL franchise with the signing of Jarome Luai.
The Chiefs don’t join the NRL until 2028 but Luai’s signing as the franchise’s marquee player has opened the floodgates of possibility as players contemplate the lure of tax-free money.
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With PNG’s first signing officially confirmed, clubs are now desperately looking to lock down star players who are out of contract from November 1.
It has been widely speculated Wests Tigers captain Luai’s current and former teammates — and even NSW State of Origin stars — are now gettable signings for the PNG team as it pieces its roster together 18 months before the squad will begin pre-season training together for the first time.
The franchise this week hosted the crew from one Aussie TV network and the hosts of three popular podcasts with many selling the dream of the team achieving instant success on the field and the dream of locals benefiting from the $600m being ploughed into the project by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade over the course of 10 years.
Luai’s shock announcement last week sent alarm bells ringing across the league with two major issues suddenly taking centre stage.
The lure of tax free salaries has been valued by NRL club recruitment managers to be worth up to 48 per cent more than what other clubs are restricted to under the $12.1 million cap.
Luai’s three-year-del deal, reported to be worth more than $1.2 million per-season with the Chiefs, is the equivalent of earning more than $2 million per-season with an Australian club. It makes Luai, unofficially, the highest paid player in the game.
Suddenly the threat of the Chiefs raiding clubs for their top-line talent is a very real issue that some clubs appear to have been caught out by.
The shockwaves and tentacles of the market disruption will shake up the competition in many ways, but one somewhat overlooked issue is that it has the potential to turn millions of disgruntled fans against PNG.
“I firmly believe, and this sounds odd, the Chiefs will become one of the most hated teams in the competition, as far as rivalries are concerned,” leading rugby league reporter David Riccio said on Fox League’s NRL 360 last week.
“Fans will be upset.”
Penrith fans particularly will have pitchforks out if rumblings of a recruitment raid take shape.
Panthers premiership winners Brian To’o, Isaah Yeo, Liam Martin and Mitch Kenny are off contract at the end of 2027 and have been strongly linked with a potential move to PNG for the final chapter of their careers.
Clubs have been given compensation in the form of $4 million and had years to prepare for the Chiefs’ becoming the dominant force in the NRL player market
However, many are still susceptible to retaining their best players, who will earn a fortune making the move to live in Port Moresby.
The other key issue brought to the surface by Luai’s signing to join the team at the end of the 2027 NRL season, is that Chiefs players will be living the Covid-bubble lifestyle of living in a luxury resort compound with 24 hour security.
This week’s charm offensive sold the dream of players moving with their families to live out a luxury escape 365 days of the year, including having access to a private island resort near Port Moresby.
That doesn’t mean the truth bomb won’t eventually drop when the reality of living in a developing country sets in for players unable to move without security awareness.
A notice on the Smart Traveller website paints a very sobering picture.
“We continue to advise (you) exercise a high degree of caution in Papua New Guinea due to high levels of crime, tribal violence, and civil unrest. Higher levels apply in some areas,” the Foreign Affairs website states.
“Events that draw large groups of people, including cultural and sporting events, can turn violent. Protests, civil disorder and tribal violence can escalate quickly. Avoid areas where violence occurs and be alert to personal safety risks.”
It’s a reality check not lost on NSW icon Laurie Daley.
“I know he (Luai) changed perception, but at the end of the day, he’s still living in a compound,” NSW Origin coach Daley said on Sky Sports Radio on Wednesday.
“You’re still living and to leave that resort, you need protection. I’m for PNG being in the comp. That’s what they’re trying to do, sell PNG. But they’re still going to have their issues because you might be going stir crazy by living with the same people. The same resorts. Going to the same cafe. It could become crowded that way.”
Bulldogs cult hero Willie Mason, who was given a VIP tour of the Chiefs’ facilities this week with Levels podcast co-host Justin Horo, can see the flip side of the coin.
The former enforcer said he can see the upside of young players wanting to escape distractions in Sydney to build their careers in PNG.
“If you want to stay locked into the game, you would probably go to somewhere like New Guinea right,” he said on this week’s podcast.
He earlier said: “That’s why the Luai signing is so good and you can build something special really quick. Really quick.
“No one has given a f*** about Papua New Guinea honestly until Jarome Luai signed. No one has cared.”
They do now.
