'We don't want them to have any kind of relief': Rival clubs fume as Bears poised to win major NRL help

Rival NRL clubs are set to grill the Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) over plans to help the Perth Bears put together a competitive roster for their inaugural season.

The Sydney Morning Herald columnist and 9News journalist Danny Weidler reported over the weekend ARLC chairman Peter V'landys has effectively agreed to help the Bears attract big-name players, although exactly what that help entails is yet to be decided.

It follows a meeting between V'landys, Bears board members James Bracey and Daniel Dickson, and NRL players association chief Clint Newton last week where the incoming 18th club pleaded for assistance, despite already signing 17 players for their inaugural season.

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The meeting reportedly happened just hours before Bracey went head to head with NRL great Paul Gallen in a fiery live TV stoush on Nine's 100% Footy, after Gallen claimed the Bears have "done nothing" to promote the Western Australian city to prospective players.

The NRL is giving the Papua New Guinea Chiefs - who will come into the competition in 2028 - a massive leg up by offering tax-free salaries to players. The Chiefs have already signed four-time premiership winner Jarome Luai and record breaking tryscorer Alex Johnston, using the lure of tax-free riches.

The Bears now look set to be handed incentives which they can use to lure similar marquee players to Perth, but CEOs from some rival clubs aren't happy.

"This was a commitment that Peter and [NRL chief] Andrew [Abdo] made," Rabbitohs boss Blake Solly told The Herald.

"I don't think any of the clubs are bloody-minded about this. We all want PNG and Perth to succeed. It's just about recognising the contribution that the 17 existing clubs have made to the growth of the game and our massive investment in pathways and players.

"Going back to the initial decision to admit Perth, the clubs raised a number of concerns about the process of getting Perth in and the fact that the NRL would own two clubs in the competition, particularly given we supply them with our most sensitive and commercially confidential information.

"That was the basis on which we accepted their entry. If there's an appetite to move away from that, it needs to involve a discussion with the 17 clubs."

An anonymous CEO of another NRL club told The Herald, "We don't want them to have any kind of relief because that was the deal".

All NRL club CEOs are set to meet in Brisbane on Friday before Magic Round begins.

Meanwhile, head coach Mal Meninga believes the Perth Bears are "doing really well" despite pressure mounting on the NRL's 18th club ahead of their inaugural season.

While the club have signed quality players including Tyran Wishart, Siosifa Talakai and Scott Sorensen, the lack of a true marquee player has been called into question, while question marks have been raised about how the Bears have hyped up their arrival.

Andrew Johns believes the Bears need help attracting a marquee player or two.

"I think they should get 50 per cent off two marquee players on the cap, so they can go out and buy two world-class spine players," he said on Nine's The Sunday Footy Show.

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Quizzed about the fiery stoush between Gallen and one of the Bears board members, Meninga remained upbeat about Perth's recruitment and explained the "strategy" to bring in players who can bridge the gap created by a lack of existing pathways.

"I was stuck over in Perth and didn't see the show unfortunately. However, I got a transcript and James is an avid Bears man, so really happy he stuck up for us," Meninga told 2GB's Continuous Call Team on Saturday afternoon.

"We know the conditions, we know what we need to do and we're just worried about what we do and what's in our control, and I think we're doing a really good job.

"We discussed a strategy a long time ago and I think we've done really well sticking to that. We've got a plan around the future and it's a sustainable one, it's not about, 'Oh, we're gonna miss out on that marquee player', and we haven't really chased marquees, to be honest with you, but you look at the players we've got and I'm really happy.

"We've got no sophisticated elite programs and no kids coming through our system, so we've got to buy players who are going to be there for a long period of time.

"We've got a few more that we're talking to, just quietly." 

Meninga said it could take up to five years before a Perth-bred player makes his way into the first grade set-up, doubling down on the need for roster stability early on.

He also denied suggestions the Bears officials - himself included - hadn't done enough in an AFL-heavy region to promote the club in the lead-up to next season.

"I think we're doing really well there," he said.

"We've got to build our ecosystem - we call it our Bear country - and we've got to gain respect. We're not going over there to say, 'Look at us, we're a big NRL team and come follow us' … we need to get into the community and I think we're doing that really well.

"There's a lot of interest in the NRL in WA, honestly, but we also understand that it's a big AFL state and there's a lot of good major sports over there.

"We've just got to build respect in the community and we need to be competitive."

Along with recruitment concerns, there have also been rumblings about animosity between Meninga and assistant Ben Gardiner, who is also the head coach for Samoa.

Gardiner has been making media appearances on Fox League and SEN this season but according to the Herald, the club attempted to block him from doing so.

The report also claims Meninga views his understudy as a threat to the top role.

Perth already had their own first grade rugby league club in the past, with the Western Reds operating from 1992 until 1997, before becoming a Super League war casualty.

Meninga hasn't coached a club team since 2001 with the Raiders, but has been highly successful at representative level with both Queensland and Australia.