The wildcard NRL option that has suddenly emerged for Nathan Cleary

Nathan Cleary is a free agent as of today – and no matter how remote the chance of him leaving Penrith, the Roosters have emerged as a wildcard to have a serious crack at landing the game’s No.1 target.

A week ago, the Tricolours had barely given Cleary a second thought. But the shock split with their premiership-winning halfback Sam Walker has opened the door.

Cleary is expected to stay at Penrith, where he has played his entire career to date. But the Roosters will at least give him something to consider beyond the Panthers and the Chiefs. PNG will have to come up with an offer with far more to it than simply relying on the lure of $1.7 million a year tax-free.

In another twist, there is a meeting scheduled for next week between Roosters supremo Nick Politis and Bulldogs general manager Phil Gould – with an obvious topic of discussion.

The Bulldogs are being pushed as a potential destination for Walker, who unexpectedly came onto the market after failing to reach an agreement over a contract extension at the Roosters.

The Dogs are not biting as they have minimal cap room. It’s an interesting fit, as the Bulldogs’ best player this season was their own No.7, Lachlan Galvin.

But it’s possible to see Walker playing halfback alongside Galvin at five-eighth. They are both instinctual players and the Dogs would need to change the way they play to accommodate Walker. It would also need the Roosters to fund some of his contract.

Ironically, Galvin was brought into Origin camp this year to replicate the off-the-cuff style of Maroons pair Cameron Munster and Walker in opposed sessions.

We’ve been told the most logical fit for Walker – the Cowboys, as part of a swap with Tom Dearden – is too complicated. Maybe that’s because Dearden’s partner, Millie, will be moving to Townsville soon after the pair had their first baby recently.

Dearden is tipped to honour the next year of his deal and then look at joining a Sydney club in 2028, despite being contracted at the Cowboys until the end of 2029.

As for Cleary, he is open to offers. As far as we can establish, he has not instructed his manager to tell the Roosters or Chiefs he is not interested.

We know PNG are still keen because their general manager, Michael Chammas, has told the Roosters he has not been making a sneaky play for Walker.

Cleary has said he is not motivated by money. Chammas will need to be creative to get his man.

Conservatively, with third-party payments, Cleary stands to clear about $2.5 million a year if he signs with the Chiefs. The Panthers are operating on a budget of about $1.7 million on the cap to retain him.

Why Roosters and Walker fell out of love

The Roosters’ break-up with Walker finished with a message of support from Nick Politis to the halfback.

Politis is ruthless, but big-hearted when it comes to his players. However, there has long been an uneasy relationship between the Walker camp and the club he loves.

In a phone call with Politis, Walker said he was grateful for everything he has had at the Roosters. Politis told Walker he would be there to help him in the future. Today, he is trying to help him out the door.

How did we get here? There were problems early. At the start of the year, some of Walker’s key advisers were ringing around and asking if the Roosters were interested in Nathan Cleary.

They were jumping at shadows at the time, and it was an indication that there was a lack of trust between Walker’s team and the Roosters.

The Roosters have always been wary of Sam’s dad, Ben Walker. And they have preferred dealing with Steve Gillis, the back-up agent for Walker behind Clinton Schifcofske, his No.1 man. It was Gillis who delivered the news to Politis that Walker wanted extra money.

Complicating the issue was that the Roosters were one of the clubs sounded out earlier in the year by representatives of Tom Dearden, who wanted to see if they could accommodate their client if he moved to Sydney to be with his partner.

Then there was the fact that veteran halfback Daly Cherry-Evans had been brought in for 2026 to either help or actually run the side.

All of this can impact a player’s ego. And those who love Walker took note.

Walker wanted to play on the right side of the field, traditionally the domain of the halfback. There are some who thought he was actually better suited to the five-eighth role. All of this has been swirling around in the background.

Throw in the club’s uneasy relationship with Ben Walker, and maybe then you can see why the relationship started to break down and where the demand for more dollars came from.

The Roosters say they respected Walker. They made their biggest offer, $4.2 million over three years. That is the ultimate show of respect.

The Roosters put years of development into Walker. They stood by him through injury and felt they deserved loyalty and perhaps a bit less of the financial demands.

They didn’t like it when, a few weeks back, Walker addressed key members of the recruitment team and told them he wanted to put talks on hold. He didn’t even entertain the idea of a negotiation at that time.

Remember, the Roosters also backed Walker when the coaching of Cooper Cronk didn’t seem to gel with the young seven. Those spot fires can be put out, but they can reignite when big decisions need to be made.

Everything went up in flames last week. It was not entirely unexpected, but few predicted it.

Politis had a sense it would erupt. He was reminding people what happened with Latrell Mitchell in 2019 when a contract stand-off led to him departing for South Sydney. Politis was desperately trying to avoid a repeat.

Politis is the most loyal individual you can meet in football. But cross him, and you will not be forgiven easily. The club might be flashy on the outside, but it’s built on Politis’ old-school ethos.

At the core of Trent Robinson’s coaching is a line he picked up from famous American basketball coach Pat Riley. It surrounds the leadership concept of the “Disease of Me”, which he raised in his book, The Winner Within: A Life Plan for Team Players.

The term describes how players become overly focused on personal glory. Riley famously summarised the danger with the maxim, “The Disease of Me always results in the Defeat of Us.”

It’s what Robinson drums into his players. The coach didn’t flinch when Walker made his decision. He is excited by the challenge ahead. Robinson keeps fresh through the cycle of talent and the challenge of getting the best out of the next crop. He won’t cop any player who doesn’t subscribe to the idea of team first.

We are not saying Walker is selfish. We are just offering an insight into Robinson’s philosophy.

Sam’s his own man

A final word on Sam Walker.

It’s hard not to have a soft spot for him. The Roosters players still care about him, and he is a decent person.

In camp with Australia’s World Cup squad in Townsville, he was seen having a deep chat with James Tedesco on the balcony of the Roosters captain’s hotel room. Nine reporter Adam Jackson said he saw them chatting for 30 minutes at the peak of the dramas last week.

Kangaroos management also put players and staff around Walker, but he seemed to be fine.

Walker lives down the road from me and I often bump into him at local cafés. He always has time for people. As flamboyant as he is as a footballer, he is a quiet person.

He comes across as a classic introverted extrovert. He is close to his family, loves the races and appears to love his football. He is very much his own person.

He would have discussed his final contract call with his long-term partner Bella, who is the sister of retired NRL star Corey Allan.

Walker goes out of his way to be friendly and welcoming. I found him fascinating after the grand final. He was the least animated and emotional player in the Roosters side. He was keen to get off the ground and into the dressing room to be with his people.

He gave off the impression he had just won a regular NRL round 16 game against the Titans rather than a premiership.

Maybe he knew something we didn’t.

Chiefs inspector Young

Hudson Young is likely to be in Port Moresby this week to decide whether to make PNG his new home – and he can thank Sam Walker for taking the media heat off him after the Raiders withdrew their four-year $4.4 million offer.

There is plenty to the Young situation. At the core of it is the Achilles injury that ended his 2026 season. That prevented him from visiting PNG at a time when Canberra had given him permission to go.

Had he toured the Chiefs’ facilities then, he could have given the Raiders an answer.

He is happy with the $900,000 per year deal offered by the Chiefs and won’t haggle. But he needs to see Port Moresby first-hand.

In the background, Young has gone through a relationship breakdown, and has also had itchy feet when it comes to living in Canberra.

A change of scenery has been on his mind. There have been suggestions that he is not happy with the make-up of the Raiders pack.

The truth is that, as a senior player, he is always talking to coach Ricky Stuart about the roster.

Young has nothing but love for the Raiders, but he may need a new environment to keep him focused and engaged in the final years of his playing career. What is certain is that he will want to have his best year in the NRL when he returns from injury next season.

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