Newly installed football director Tim Sheens has reportedly splashed out nearly $2 million on his first big-name signing at Wests Tigers, with Isaiah Papali’i set to join the club in 2023.
The 23-year-old hit the market this month after a stellar first season with the Parramatta Eels.
Papali’i played all but one game and scored seven tries, turning around a career that stalled when he was frozen out at the Warriors in 2020.
The second-rower flirted with being an 80-minute player before he was moved to prop and the bench late in the season by Eels coach Brad Arthur.
Regardless, his form prompted the Tigers to push hard with an offer Parramatta, who have several stars off contract at the end of 2022, could not match.
News Corp reports Papali’i has agreed to a three-year contract worth more than $600,000 per season with the Tigers.
The signing stands to be Sheens’ first big move since returning to Concord, though he is on the cusp of securing Canberra hooker Josh Hodgson for 2022.
The clubs have been locked in talks over Hodgson’s $900,000 wages but the stalemate could be resolved “very shortly”.
The Tigers had only offered to cover slightly more than half of the 32-year-old’s salary.
“I am hearing that the Josh Hodgson move is not far off, from the Raiders to the Wests Tigers,” 7NEWS Sydney’s Michelle Bishop told SEN on Wednesday.
“I’m hearing there’s a bit playing on in the background in terms of his manager trying to get the best money deal for him, which he’s of course entitled to.
“So that’s between the Raiders and the Tigers to work out who’s going to pay what but we will see him at the Tigers very shortly, I’m told.”
Parramatta, meanwhile, now appear to have lost two stars in two weeks.
The Eels hit their first retention hurdle when Marata Niukore signed a four-year deal with the New Zealand Warriors.
It’s believed the Warriors were able to blow Parramatta’s offer out of the water, leaving him to take up a far bigger role in the pack at Auckland given his price.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to sign Marata on a long-term deal,” Warriors CEO Cameron George said.
“We had him marked down as one of our key recruitment targets once we were able to go to the market for players off contract after the 2022 season.
“His home is Auckland, he knows our club really well and he’s now a well-established first grader who’s going to be a key player for us.
“He’s a really big part of our long-term future through to 2026.”
A former Junior Kiwi, Niukore came through the Warriors system before moving to Sydney as a 20-year-old in 2017.
The Niukore and Papali’i defections highlight the predicament Parramatta find themselves in as they juggle the 16 remaining off-contract players and a salary cap puzzle at the same time.
They were able to re-sign Reagan Campbell-Gillard but only after he’d publicly flirted with the idea of eyeing a move to the Dolphins.
Reed Mahoney was spotted meeting with Canterbury and, given the Bulldogs’ desire for a hooker, it’s expected they will offer big money.
Eels captain Clint Gutherson and five-eighth Dylan Brown are among others out of contract at the end of 2022, including Junior Paulo, Maika Sivo and Ryan Matterson.
The Eels are, however, adamant they will be able to keep the majority of their stars, claiming last week that negotiations with player managers had been “robust, professional and constructive”.
https://7news.com.au/sport/rugby-league/tim-sheens-splashes-out-18-million-to-poach-big-name-signing-for-wests-tigers-c-4601191
