“I think we probably all will.”
It was the “astonishing” comment Braith Anasta said would have raised “alarm bells” at Penrith.
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Not just because of what it signalled, but who it came from.
Isaah Yeo is a head coach’s dream. Not only is he the ultimate workhorse, regularly churning out over 100 metres and 30 tackles per game, but off the field he is just as consistent.
Ask Yeo and he’ll tell you that the Panthers are taking it one game at a time. That they just have to stick to the process. That it’s a next man up mentality during the Origin period.
So when asked if he would test the open market after his current contract ends in 2027, Yeo’s answer was surprising.
“I think we probably all will,” he replied.
All being the 12 players in Penrith’s top 30 who are without a contract beyond next season.
John Fonua, Luron Patea and Billy Scott are the only three names on that list who don’t regularly feature in Penrith’s NRL team on a weekly basis.
Otherwise, this squad may look very different by the start of the 2028 season with co-captains Yeo and Nathan Cleary headlining a list that includes nine regular first-graders who could be on the move.
Panthers players off-contract at the end of 2027
Billy Scott, Blaize Talagi, Brian To’o, Isaah Yeo, Isaiah Papali’i, John Fonua, Liam Martin, Luron Patea, Mitch Kenny, Moses Leota, Nathan Cleary, Paul Alamoti
‘No interest’ Cleary clue on future | 00:57
Yeo’s comments came after Jarome Luai signed with the PNG Chiefs, sparking speculation some of his former Panthers teammates could soon follow him.
Yeo didn’t shoot down the idea when it was posed to him at the time, telling reporters “you are going to have to be open minded” and that while the “best-case scenario” was finishing his career at Penrith, “you have to think of your family”.
“I’ve got three young children now and this will probably be my last contract,” he said.
Tellingly, Yeo also added it was “hard” to make a decision because he was waiting for “dominoes to fall”.
“And that’s probably Ivan and Nathan.”
Well, one of those dominoes has fallen and now that Ivan is out of the picture, naturally there will be talk that son Nathan could be next and if he goes, what does it mean moving forward?
Panthers CEO Matt Cameron is confident that won’t be the case, telling reporters on Wednesday the reaction to Peter Wallace’s appointment as Cleary’s replacement says as much.
But he also admitted that as much as the “priority” is to keep all their off-contract players, there will be interest elsewhere and it will be difficult to keep them all.
“I used AI last night because I can’t add up all the numbers, and I think the number was 507 days until they come off contract,” Cameron added.
“We’re not in a rush. We’re going to respect the players and their decisions that they want to make.”
So, what does the Panthers roster look like beyond 2027 and who could realistically be on the move?
WHY CLEARY IS THE ‘ONE’ WHO COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING
Looking at the list of 12 Penrith players coming off-contract at the end of 2027, the obvious priority would be Cleary.
Two-time premiership winning five-eighth and Fox League panellist Luke Keary told foxsports.com.au that if he had to put money on it, he would have Cleary staying at Penrith.
“Just because he’s so embedded there,” Keary added.
The former Roosters and Rabbitohs playmaker said he was confident in how the Panthers will navigate the next few years given how they have set up their pathways system, but added that could all change if Cleary leaves.
“Nathan will be the big one. He is the one,” Keary added.
“If he decides to go then it’s probably a different story. I feel like they can lose a lot of (players)… like Isaah (Yeo) would be a huge loss, but Nathan is the most influential.”
The Panthers halfback has been in no rush up until this point to make a call on his future, telling reporters earlier in the year that he is “open to everything”.
That included testing the open market, having never done it before in his career. Cleary previously signed extensions in 2018 and 2022 well before he had a chance to entertain other offers.
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Ivan reveals Nathan’s response | 00:43
“It’s a process that’s pretty foreign to me, I’ve never done it,” Cleary said at the time.
The Panthers halfback did admit it would be “pretty hard to imagine” leaving the Panthers, but the same could have been said for father Ivan. So, you definitely can’t rule it out.
It is, however, hard to see Cleary at any other NRL club outside of potentially reuniting with Luai at the Chiefs.
This, remember, is a player who has conquered everything in the game outside of the Origin arena and so there is something to be said about wanting a fresh challenge.
Keary, however, does not believe that would be with another NRL team, even if it was the Chiefs or Perth Bears.
“I don’t think so,” he said.
“This is a pure guess. I think with him, what he’s done there is unbelievable and probably will never happen again, I just see him if he leaves Penrith — which to be honest I don’t know if he will, I reckon it’s a 50-50 chance — but I just get this feeling that he’d go for a challenge because that’s the type of person he is.
“Whether the challenge would maybe be a different game or a different competition?”
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Of course, maybe the idea of winning a premiership without his dad could be a new challenge in itself for Cleary, especially if it means leading a new-look Panthers team should several of his teammates leave in the coming years.
Otherwise, a move to the Super League or rugby union switch have also been floated as possibilities for Cleary.
Ben Elias reported earlier in the year on NRL 360 that Hull FC had offered Cleary a four-year deal worth upwards of $1.9 million (1 million pounds) per season in a bid to lure him overseas.
Cleary is just entering the prime of his career, so it is hard to see him making the Super League switch right now when — whether right or wrong — there is generally a perception that players move to that competition at the back-end of their careers or when they are young and struggling for minutes in the NRL.
But it would allow him to move closer to partner Mary Fowler, and the money is hard to turn down too.
“It’d be very hard to see him go to the Super League,” Keary said.
“I couldn’t see him doing that (right now). The only reason I could see it is because he would be closer to Mary.”
Wallace on ‘batting after Bradman?’ | 00:44
Instead, Keary said he could see European rugby being more appealing to Cleary if he chose a path outside of the NRL.
“I know the money in European rugby is a lot more than Super League and you’re probably a chance of (using it for) the global game,” he added.
“I don’t know if the Wallabies come into it. It’d be a big challenge.”
As for rugby, Cleary has previously admitted he is “open” to switching codes at some point in his career and that could also weigh into his decision, but it doesn’t sound like a final call will come anytime soon.
“I gather he probably won’t make a decision until the end of the season after the World Cup,” Keary said.
“It literally could be anything, but I can’t see him playing for another club. It doesn’t make sense to me unless it’s a different competition.”
It goes without saying that the Panthers won’t simply be able to replace Cleary if he leaves and the fact Talagi is also off contract at the end of 2027 only complicates matters.
The club’s current NSW Cup halves pairing is Jack Cole, who is without a deal beyond this year, and Kurt Falls. Falls is a veteran who has bounced in and out of NSW Cup and unlikely to get a look-in at NRL level, while Cole is a strong defender with all the fundamentals but lacks the top-level ball-playing and is likely to look elsewhere after being overlooked in the wake of Jarome Luai’s exit.
Further down, both Haami Loza and Ellyjah Birve have been impressive in Jersey Flegg but are a long way off NRL at this stage and it seems more likely if the Panthers retain Talagi and Cleary leaves they would look to partner him with someone like Jack Cogger, who is signed through to 2028.
THE GLUE THAT HOLDS THE MIDDLE TOGETHER
Yeo would be the next priority, having developed into one of the club’s most influential leaders since debuting for the Panthers all the way back in 2014.
The Dubbo junior began his career in the centres and back row before transitioning to lock in 2020, just as Penrith began its charge towards four-straight premierships.
Yeo has since evolved into the perfect example of the modern-day lock forward, possessing both the leg drive to pump out big metres while also acting as an extra ball-playing option through the middle to help create space for someone like Cleary to thrive.
A tireless defender, the Panthers would miss Yeo’s high workrate and consistency through the middle but they have already developed his short-term replacement in Lindsay Smith.
Smith was highly-rated coming through the Penrith system as a no-nonsense prop with a sneaky offload, but like Yeo has become so much more than that since making his debut in 2021 and recently re-signed until the end of the 2029 season.
Looking at the bigger picture, however, Billy Phillips may be the long-term successor at lock once he really fills out after cementing his spot in the NRL team this year.
He too, like Smith, extended on a long-term deal.
THE POTENTIAL ‘HUGE’ LOSS THAT CAN’T GO UNDERSOLD
Next on the list would be Brian To’o, who was once told he was too small before earning his NRL debut in 2019.
It goes without saying that he has certainly proved that line of thinking to be wrong, becoming one of the most destructive wingers in the modern game.
With legs built like tree trunks, the 27-year-old has not dipped under 150 metres per game since he entered the league while he has hit over 100 tackle busts in four of his past five seasons.
The post-contact metres are where To’o really makes his money, however, with the Panthers winger averaging the sixth-most (6.0) per game this season.
He is also surprisingly effective in the air for his short stature, while his decision-making in defence is among the best in the league at the position.
Replacing a winger would typically be one of the easier roster-building jobs, but To’o is an exception to that rule.
The Panthers do have Izack Tago contracted until 2028 and if he reverted back to the starting side, there is an option to push Paul Alamoti back out to the wing.
But Alamoti himself is without a contract beyond 2027, while the Panthers also have the more immediate headache of trying to extend breakout State of Origin bolter Tom Jenkins.
Jenkins is off contract at the end of this season and his price tag is going up with every try he scores, while a Blues call-up would only increase that even more.
Cleary confirms departure from Panthers | 02:40
In terms of players coming through the system that the Panthers could turn to, Casey McLean’s brother Jesse has been waiting in the wings since his NRL debut in 2023.
He would be a very different style of player to To’o, lacking the size and explosiveness to produce the same kind of metres that have been so important to Penrith winning the field position battle in recent years.
But he is a slick finisher and only 21 years old with plenty of development left in him.
It is a different story with Sione ‘Johnny’ Fonua, who joined the club after coming through Parramatta’s juniors and is playing well for the NSW Cup. The 26-year-old has also featured a few times in Penrith’s extended squad for the NRL, although he too like Alamoti is off contract beyond 2027.
Keary said To’o would be a “huge” loss, describing him as one of the “pillars” of what the Panthers have achieved along with Cleary, Yeo and Liam Martin.
“All the other guys have been fantastic, but they’ve obviously been there the longest,” Keary added.
“Brian would be (a) massive (loss). He’s been one of their best players every year.”
THE MAJOR HOLE PANTHERS MAY HAVE TO FILL UP FRONT
Up front, there would be a major void to fill if the Panthers lost more than one of Mitch Kenny, Liam Martin, Isaiah Papali’i and Moses Leota.
That is especially true if Yeo left, as that would likely require Smith to then shift to lock forward and leave another starting position to be filled at front row.
Kenny and Martin have already been linked with potential moves to the PNG Chiefs too when they enter the NRL in 2028.
As already covered, both Smith and Phillips will be a key part of Penrith’s plans while Luron Patea impressed in his brief NRL stints last year.
He has featured in NSW Cup this season and been building up his ability to play bigger minutes, which could be a hint at the club’s long-term plan for him.
Patea offered something completely different to Penrith’s other forwards off the bench with an explosive running style not too dissimilar to Spencer Leniu, which when paired with a late offload, made him a dangerous player every time he touched the ball.
He doesn’t have a contract beyond 2027 though, but may be one of the more affordable players that Penrith can keep.
Both Liam Henry and Scott Sorensen are leaving the club for Perth at the end of the year, but the Panthers extended Luke Garner until at least the end of 2028 as one option on the edge.
Otherwise, looking at the pathways, Zakauri Clarke is a big part of Penrith’s plans after extending until at least end of 2028 earlier this year and could replace either Martin or Papali’i.
Another name to watch is Judah Galuvao, the son of legendary Panther Joe, while Leo Stipe Latu has been a standout on the edge coming through the system and was recently rewarded with his Jersey Flegg debut and selection in the NSWRL City Origin Under 18s squad.
As for Kenny, Billy Scott looms as the obvious successor, although he is also off contract beyond 2027.
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