Wallabies coach Les Kiss has admitted Zac Lomax won’t be ruled out of contention for a Wallabies jersey at the 2027 Rugby World Cup if he makes a code switch.
Lomax, who was released by the Eels at the end of 2025 to pursue opportunities away from the NRL, was heavily linked with the Saudi Arabian-backed R360 competition.
That ultimately was pushed back to 2028, and Lomax’s future has remained in limbo.
There have been suggestions he could target time in either Japanese or French rugby union, while it was also revealed he had toured facilities at the Western Force, who play out of Perth in the Super Rugby Pacific competition.
Lomax, unless he can do a deal with Parramatta, is unlikely to be able to return to the NRL until at least the end of 2028, with a condition of his release reported to be that he can’t play for a rival NRL club for what would have been the duration of his deal with the blue and gold.
The outside back had signed a four-year deal from the start of 2025 after being released from the St George Illawarra Dragons during the 2024 campaign.
The potential to chase a Wallabies jersey ahead of rugby union’s biggest event being played in Australia during 2027 could be on Lomax’s mind though, and Kiss told News Corp that he will keep an open mind to the potential of selecting the high-flying winger.
“The small discussions I’ve had around that is that if a player is interested, and if they’ve had some history in their youth that they’ve been involved in the game, it always helps,” he told the publication.
“I think someone like Zac has from my memory, of some people talking about him.
“Those types of people, if they have the appetite, then I think the conversations are always open.
“You can’t just put your head in the sand over these things, but I do think good, smart decisions should always be there and we should be open to them.
“Where that goes, that’s not for me, and a full decision at this stage, it’ll be in other hands as well because there’s a lot of things that come into play for those things to happen, but why not have the conversations if they’re interested?”
Australian rugby union have long flagged the idea of a raid on the NRL ahead of the World Cup, but have so far only managed to lock in the signings of returning stars Joseph Suaalii (who is already back in the 15-man game) and Mark Nawaqanitawase (who will exit the Roosters at the end of 2026).