Storm coach gives blessing for star to sign with rivals

By Jasper Bruce 

Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy has given “valuable servant” Cameron Munster his personal blessing to sign with PNG for their inaugural NRL season.

Munster is out of contract after 2027 and, in recent days, the Storm have granted the veteran five-eighth early permission to negotiate with the Chiefs.

Melbourne’s most-capped active player, Munster may yet ink a contract extension to remain with the Storm for 2028 and beyond

But the 31-year-old can now entertain advances from the NRL’s forthcoming 19th team, who are already assembling an impressive roster that features Jarome Luai, Alex Johnston and Connor Watson.

Munster commands a seven-figure salary at the Storm but the chance for tax-free windfall at the Chiefs could be life-changing for the Queensland captain as he draws nearer to retirement.

Having won two premierships across 251 appearances for the Storm, Munster would have enough credits in the bank to leave on good terms.

“‘Mun’ has done a whole heap for our club and he’s done it over a long period of time,” said Bellamy, who handed Munster his NRL debut in 2014.

“He’s been a wonderful player with our club, so if he sees that he wants to go to the team in Papua New Guinea … I’d be happy to let him go.”

A decision on Munster’s future will come down to discussions between agent Braith Anasta, Storm football manager Frank Ponissi and chief executive Justin Rodski.

“I don’t know whether they’ll be (making) the same decision as me but he’s done a lot for our club, ‘Mun’,” Bellamy said, after last night’s close loss to the mighty South Sydney Rabbitohs almost certainly ended the Storm’s 2026 premiership hopes..

“He’s been a valuable servant and very loyal. So if he wants to do that and that’s going to help him in later life, well, I’m willing to say, ‘Yeah, okay’.

“We’ll just see what happens but I’ll go on the record as saying if he wants to go and his family wants to go, well, he goes with my blessing.”

Storm captain Harry Grant felt it made sense for Munster to begin contemplating his future during his current lay-off with a knee injury.

Players coming into the final year of their contract can typically begin negotiating with rival clubs from November 1.

But Munster is likely to be playing for Australia at the World Cup between October and November this year.

“It’ll probably be a bit of a busy time towards the end of the year with the World Cup and everything like that, so I think it’s not a bad time for him to have that look,” Grant said.

“The NRL have brought a couple of new teams in so I don’t think you can hold (grudges against) players for having that opportunity to talk to them.”

Meanwhile, in last night’s other match, a game-clinching Daly Cherry-Evans field goal and a hat-trick from James Tedesco have propelled the Sydney Roosters to a thrilling 23-22 win over an injury-smashed Newcastle.

In one of the games of the season, the Knights were brave at home throughout, while losing Origin back-rower Dylan Lucas to a dislocated and suspected broken left ankle in the first period and star half Dylan Brown to a worrying knee injury early in the second.

If the title favourites Penrith have wobbled over the weeks around State of Origin, the high-flying Roosters have been building and Friday night’s win was their fifth in a row – the competition’s best record in that period – taking them up to second on the ladder.

“That’s tough at the moment,” Newcastle coach Justin Holbrook said.

“It could have been one of one of our best wins tonight with what we had to deal with … and that’s why it’s so devastating for myself to sit here now with a side that you can be so close to being so happy and yet we’re not.

“The docs, physio is not thinking it’s good (on Brown), but cross my fingers and hope we get some good news with the scans.

“(With Lucas) he’s dislocation straight away, and so that’s back in, which is good. But just got to see how much damage around that’s been done as well.”