Bula won’t say goodbye to Tigers, V’landys takes expansion detour, Sharks in strife over women’s physio ad

Jahream Bula has declared that he is in it for the long haul with Wests Tigers, downplaying concerns that the fullback’s contractual future will follow the messy blueprint laid out by want-away five-eighth Lachlan Galvin. 

Bula is represented by powerful agent Isaac Moses, who has been at loggerheads with Tigers chief executive Shane Richardson over the future of rising star Galvin.

Two of Moses’ most high-profile clients, David Klemmer and John Bateman, have been moved on by the Tigers over the last six months. 

The Tigers put a five-year contract offer on the table for Galvin before the club was informed that the playmaker would not entertain the proposal and wanted to play elsewhere beyond the expiry of his deal in 2026.

There was widespread speculation that Bula might be the next Moses client to seek a get-out from the Tigers.

But the Fijian international, who can talk to rival clubs from November 1, moved to clear up his future ahead of Saturday’s Magic Round clash with St George Illawarra.

Asked by AAP if he saw himself as Tigers player long term, Bula said: “Of course, but I don’t really want to get into detail about that stuff.

“I love what I’m doing here and I’m focused on the week ahead and this season.

“I’m enjoying it here, we’re changing things around and I can see where this team’s heading.” 

Bula has been one of the Tigers’ standouts during his two seasons in the NRL, which have both culminated in the club picking up the wooden spoon. 

The 23-year-old’s confidence in the Tigers’ direction is backed up by statistics.

Bula won just four games in both his debut season in 2023 and tasted victory the same number of times in 2024.

But after Sunday’s nailbiting golden point win over Cronulla, the Tigers (4-5) have already matched that figure through their first nine games. 

“It feels so much better and the whole vibe around this team is good, I’m enjoying myself,” Bula said. 

“The boys didn’t give up (against the Sharks), none of the boys dropped their heads.

“I feel like the past few years, like times when things got tough, a few of the boys would drop their heads. 

“But this year is totally different, man, and Jarome (Luai) brings a lot of confidence to the team, he is good at making the whole team better.

“It (beating the Dragons) would be a big confidence booster.” 

The Tigers have won all but one of the five games in 2025 when their first-choice spine of Bula, Galvin, halfback Luai and hooker Api Koroisau have started together. 

Queensland firming in expansion race

New Zealand had been considered the frontrunner to fill the 20th franchise spot that the NRL is hoping to fill but ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys has talked up the possibility of Queensland getting a fifth team instead.

There are three bid teams from NZ who are hoping to follow the Perth Bears and Papua New Guinea into the NRL during the next TV rights cycle, likely to be early next decade.

But it is not a fait accompli that the NRL will add another team across the Tasman to create an instant rivalry with the Warriors.

An Ipswich bid and Central Queensland are potential options and V’landys told The Courier-Mail that QRL boss Ben Ikin’s push for another side in the Sunshine State was gaining momentum.

“Another NRL team in Queensland is an option, absolutely,” he said.

“We have never ruled out a fifth team in Queensland, there’s a lot of options for the 20th team and that’s one of them.

“It is not a foregone conclusion that the 20th team will be a second team in New Zealand.

“The Dolphins didn’t cannibalise the Broncos.

“In fact what they did was create another rivalry between the Dolphins and Broncos. If you add another Queensland team, you can create more rivalries with the Broncos and Dolphins.”

V’landys said the Perth Bears deal was still not sorted with the Western Australian government but was hoping to have it finalised later this month.

“The euphoria I have seen has been extraordinary,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons why we wanted to bring the Bears back.

“There’s a lot of people who support the Bears and they have a readymade supporter base. They have the pathways with their juniors and it’s a perfect marriage if it happens with Perth.

“It could be one of the real success stories of the future. Perth is a goldmine for the NRL. It has enormous potential. It gives us a national footprint to a degree and the time zone works really well with our global and expansion strategies.”

Ikin believes Ipswich should be the next cab off the NRL expansion rank. The Ipswich-based Jets bid would also add the romantic notion of revitalising foundation club Newtown Jets.

“That (western corridor) region has such a rich rugby league history and from a population perspective is one of the fastest growing in the country, and it is rugby league mad.

“The AFL are out there with an elite presence (at the Brisbane Lions’ home base in Springfield) and we are not. 

“Who doesn’t like a bit of romance in rugby league? To have that brand in the elite national competition would be special,” Ikin added.

“In that western region effectively you will drag in Brisbane central like the (Brisbane) Tigers, the Ipswich Jets as another pathways club and the Western Clydesdales out there in Toowoomba.”

Sharks physio ad highlights ‘systemic issues’

The Australian Physiotherapy Association will write to the Australian Sports Commission with concerns of “systemic” issues across major codes, after Cronulla advertised a job with their NRLW team as a voluntary role.

The Sharks were on Wednesday forced to apologise for the job ad, insisting a clerical error was responsible for suggesting the assistant physio of their NRLW side would receive no pay.

Cronulla boss Dino Mezzatesta has since confirmed to AAP the position will receive pay at or above market rates, with the amended advertisement offering an “honorarium position”.

Regardless, the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) claim they were inundated with similar stories from physios across elite sport, who have been asked to work on a volunteer basis at professional clubs or with minimal pay.

That has prompted the APA to write to the Sports Commission and each of Australia’s major codes, concerned the issue is commonplace.

“This is a learning opportunity, but it has unearthed a wider systemic issue that has been going on for too long,” APA CEO Rob LoPresti told AAP. 

“What we’re hearing from our membership that this is potentially indicative of a bigger, broader and more systemic issue.”

LoPresti said he was also concerned about possible gaps between pay for men’s and women’s sports, with funding and season length often a challenge for clubs.

He also believed a number of clubs across multiple sports attempted to trade off the experience of working in elite systems as a way to not pay medical staff appropriately.

“We’re not saying there is never a place for any volunteering ever, but not at elite levels,” LoPresti said. 

“At elite levels we have high expectations of our athletes, and we should have high expectations around the medical support.

“We would also hope and expect that when talking about the medical treatment of women and men’s sporting codes, that there is equivalence there.”

Several NRL clubs spoken to by AAP on Wednesday insisted there was the highest standards for NRLW players, be it through dedicated staff leaning on men’s physios for assistance or external practices.

Mezzatesta also stressed his club were meeting standards, after a barrage of online abuse.

The Sharks chief executive said the issue was with the ad laid with the way it had been classified on an external website, with the posting requiring applicants to have an allied health degree and attend up to four training session a week plus games.

The Sharks chief executive said the issue was how the original ad had been classified on an external website, with applicants required to have an allied health degree and attend up to four training session a week plus games.

“It was never a volunteer role. It was always honorarium,” Mezzatesta said.

“I understand the backlash, because you are asking someone to complete a duty which is a specialised duty for free, which was never our intent.

“This is not about trying to rob people or bend rules. 

“The way it is designed and the intent of the role, if we do break down to per hour, I can assure you it is better than market rates.” 

with AAP