The Papua New Guinea Chiefs believe the bombshell signing of Wests Tigers co-captain Jarome Luai proves that any NRL player can be a realistic target for their maiden season in 2028.
Even the Chiefs hierarchy was stunned when the four-time premiership winner signed a three-year deal this week, becoming the expansion franchise’s first player.
“If you told us when we took on the job three months ago that Jarome Luai would be our first signing, we wouldn’t have believed it,” said football boss Michael Chammas.
Sealed during his visit to Port Moresby over the weekend, Luai’s deal is a stunning coup for the rugby league-mad nation as it forges into the NRL with a team backed by millions in government funding.
“A player of his standing choosing PNG will resonate far beyond the sport. It will inspire a generation,” Chammas said.
However, the signing also represents the first real vindication of the renegade expansion concept as a whole, which will see players and their families living full-time in a secure Port Moresby compound built by the PNG government.
Concerns had been raised about whether NRL players would uproot their families from Australia to live in a country that contends with high crime rates and other socio-cultural issues.
But the Chiefs hierarchy felt Luai’s signing proved that top-tier players would sign up not just for tax-free salaries, but to be part of rugby league history from the ground floor.
“It sends a message: if it’s good enough for Jarome, it’s good enough for anyone,” Chammas said.
“It sends a message to people that this is going to be the adventure of a lifetime. Is it something they envisaged maybe two or three years ago? Maybe not.
“But when you get a chance to go over there and see what it means to everyone in PNG ... it means everything to them.
“It resonated with me, and I know it resonated with Jarome. The fact that he’s actually coming with his family, I think people look at that and think it sends a really strong message.”
PNG international Alex Johnston has already told South Sydney teammates that he will join the Chiefs for 2028 after the Rabbitohs gave the try-scoring ace early permission to negotiate with the club. A contract is expected to be formalised imminently.
Only players without deals for 2027 can currently sign for 2028, and new anti-tampering rules muzzled the PNG hierarchy from explicitly name-checking their next target on Thursday.
Chammas would not be drawn on a question about reuniting Luai with Nathan Cleary, his four-time premiership-winning halves partner at Penrith.
But players who are fully on board with the Chiefs’ mission, and those who could join Luai in the spine, appear to be the next priorities.
“It was about the person first, and we made that clear with Jarome,” Chammas said.
“But then you start looking at the spine as the most important component of what we do, and we’ve got a pretty integral part of that now.
“We can take stock a little bit and work out what we do next. We’ve got 18 to 20 months before we kick a ball. I think that’s the area (the spine) we’ll focus on, making sure those key positions have quality players.”
Chammas is confident the Chiefs can be competitive from the outset.
“Jarome coming to our club sends a message to other players looking at joining us that you’re not coming for a holiday. We are here to win, and we’re serious about that,” he said.
