Luai should have waited a week — the Tigers deserved that much
Luai’s PNG dash failed the pub test
Jarome Luai should have waited one week. After failing to finish against North Queensland, he asked to remain in Townsville while his teammates flew home, then travelled by private jet with his manager to Port Moresby, joined Prime Minister James Marape at the PNG Open and was unveiled as a tourism ambassador.
The Wests Tigers first learnt the details when photographs appeared on social media. That is the killer. Luai was still being paid by the Tigers and went to PNG in connection with a third-party arrangement linked to his future, even though the PNG Chiefs do not enter the competition until 2028. The argument that it was technically separate from the future club does not rescue the optics.
Luai had two days off and is entitled to maximise his earnings; indeed, he has seen an opportunity and exploited it brilliantly. But professional obligations are bigger than the wording of a contract. He was also the Tigers’ last available playmaker after injuries to Javon Andrews and Latu Fainu and surgery for Adam Doueihi.
The relationship with Benji has gone from bromance to beyond repair, and both sides need the separation. Luai is a good player with four premiership rings, not the overrated passenger some claim, but this was another avoidable sideshow for a club already drowning in them.
Jai Arrow has made bitter enemies lower their weapons
Jai Arrow’s 100th game for South Sydney matters more than the result. What he is confronting with his MND diagnosis is awful, yet he continues to attend training, remain around the club and meet an unimaginable situation with stoicism, humour and a relentlessly positive attitude.
That strength has achieved something almost impossible: South Sydney and the Roosters have laid down their guns. The usual barbs have probably been quieter this week, while Nick Politis’s financial assistance to help Arrow explore treatment avenues in Europe will never be forgotten by Souths. For two clubs whose hostility dates to 1908, it is rugby league’s most magical show of unity.
The rivalry itself is not a marketing invention. Ron Coote’s move from Souths to the Roosters produced porch-side recruitment by Don Furner Senior, a pet rabbit named Ronny ending up in a pot and, I think, even a curse. Subtle, it wasn’t.
Friday night will be beautiful because Arrow deserves every ounce of affection coming his way. The aggression can resume after he reaches the sideline.
Resting nine Roosters is clever science and poor football
Trent Robinson has earned enormous latitude, but resting nine players before the finals is the wrong call. The Roosters have been spluttering and are still trying to build the combination between Hugo Savala and Daly Cherry-Evans; those halves need rhythm, not introductions again when September begins.
Yes, modern sports science makes mass restings increasingly common, the Roosters have played eight or nine consecutive weeks since their round-18 bye, and Robinson will be judged on September rather than round 27. One match will not define their season. It can, however, cost momentum and confidence.
This is no reserve-grade pack, with Spencer Leniu, Lindsay Collins, Salesi Fuiketi, Egan Butcher and Connor Watson still involved, while Toby Rodwell and Rex Bethwaite offer a glimpse of the next generation. Souths should nevertheless win comfortably, especially with Latrell Mitchell returning.
I would not move this fixture from round 27. The 2023 meeting decided a finals place, while Sin Bin Sunday produced seven dismissals and one of the most ferocious contests I have witnessed. Scheduling should preserve the possibility of theatre, not surrender to the chance a coach reaches for cotton wool.
Souths must solve the Dufty-grey squeeze
South Sydney’s improving depth has created a real problem at fullback, and reputation cannot decide it. Matt Dufty arrived on a $1,200 full-time training wage and has been phenomenal in the No.1 jersey, bringing the explosiveness and speed that made him an excitement machine. He has earned serious consideration for another deal.
Jye grey, however, is signed until 2029 and was being linked with a $900,000 move earlier in the year. He was elite before losing game time, and he cannot be expected to accept the No.14 jersey indefinitely simply because Dufty exceeded every expectation. A pay packet does not guarantee selection, but long-term roster planning cannot be ignored either.
The squeeze extends beyond fullback. Pete Mamouzelos has been told he is free to leave, although I don’t know whether that has progressed, while Tyran Wishart was initially signed to play hooker and will, I reckon, be kept there. Cody Walker is off contract and will probably re-sign, with further movement potentially coming.
On the field, the equation is more exciting. David Fifita was in beast mode against Gold Coast; if he reproduces it alongside Latrell, Souths suddenly possess two game-breakers capable of wrecking a final.
Penrith’s ruthlessness has left Blaize on the outer
Blaize Talagi needs a fresh club because Penrith’s selection verdict is now unmistakable. The Tigers match looked like the perfect opportunity to restore him at left centre and rebuild confidence, yet he still could not force his way into the side.
Blaize is an elite attacking talent who has played in the halves, centres and at fullback, but Ivan Cleary has decided his defensive weaknesses are incompatible with Penrith’s premiership system. I will not second-guess a coach who has delivered four consecutive titles. Penrith have given Blaize a fair chance, including roughly 20 rounds this season, and repeatedly overlooking him says he has not absorbed the message.
That does not make him a lost cause. It makes him a valuable player whose strengths will matter more elsewhere. I would not be surprised if he receives permission to look around, and Canterbury is an obvious possibility given his friendship with Lachlan Galvin and Isaac Moses’s repaired relationships at Belmore. Parramatta should also investigate a return, even if it resembles buying back the farm.
Penrith, meanwhile, are right not to rest their side wholesale. Mitch Kenny is returning from leg and ankle injuries, and the mail is he will play about half an hour, with Freddy Lussick available to carry the remaining load. Kenny’s line speed, fight and cleanup work are exactly what Penrith need sharpened before September.
Volkman has outgrown Parramatta’s backup plan
Ronnie Volkman has earned a starting jersey, whether Parramatta can provide it or not. He has overcome injury problems, landed at the Eels and played as though his career depends on every possession; he could not have done more, and his individual try was the work of a footballer whose confidence has finally caught up with his ability.
Let’s retain perspective. Volkman is not the next Messiah and will not single-handedly deliver a premiership, but with 18 clubs in the competition next year he is too good to remain a permanent understudy. Parramatta must retain him if possible, yet another club should offer him a starting five-eighth role if the Eels cannot.
The Eels have won six of their past 10, although I remain wary because they produced a similar late run last year and everyone prematurely declared them fixed. Their recruitment record demands scepticism: they publicised a target list after missing Keon, Cherry and Lachlan Galvin, while they also haggled over money with Volkman.
That is Parramatta in miniature — shopping for salvation while a very good footballer develops under their nose. Stop searching long enough to recognise him.
