A day after being confirmed as head coach of the PNG Chiefs, Willie Peters has now set his sights on three of the best players the NRL has to offer.
Securing Peters (Head Coach), Michael Chammas (GM of Football) and Liam Ayoub (Head of Recruitment) over the past few months, the Chiefs’ attention has now turned to building their foundation roster.
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As reported by Code Sports, the PNG Chiefs have discussed superstar trio Cameron Munster, Isaah Yeo and Nathan Cleary as potential recruitment targets as they look to make a splash in the transfer market.
While they are not yet able to officially speak to them until at least November 1, it is understood that they will make formal approaches to the trio if they remain on the open market and are still unsigned beyond 2027 come November.
Peters shares a close bond with the trio after spending time with them during the recent Tour of England, where he worked under Kevin Walters as an assistant coach for the Australian Kangaroos.
“I want to get strong leaders, I think that’s important. Especially in the environment that we’re in. The leaders are the one who drive your culture and standards, we’ll facilitate that as well as staff,” Peters said on NRL 360.
“For me, good people that want to be there. The guys that you’ve mentioned (Munster, Cleary, Yeo) are contracted, and we can’t speak to them until November, but of course, those guys, if they’re available, appeal to anyone.
“We’ll then look at players we need for certain positions. It’s about who is going to add value off the field, because that’s what this club is going to be about.
“We’ll be looking within too. We’ll be setting up pathways and making sure we’ve got eyes on every single player in Papua New Guinea. What we want to build eventually is having as many players from PNG in that team and giving them that pathway.”
In another interview, Peters told CODE Sports, sent a message to the superstar trio.
“At the right time, if players want to talk to the Chiefs, then I’m sure Michael Chammas will be on the phone.”
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Rumours linking Munster to the Chiefs emerged earlier this week because he shares the same manager (Braith Anasta) as Peters.
“Braith Anasta manages Willie Peters. Braith Anasta manages Cameron Munster. Cameron Munsters comes off-contract at Melbourne at the end of 2027, which coincides with PNG,” journalist Brent Read said on Triple M’s Sunday Sin Bin.
“Now they can’t talk to him yet because obviously he’s a November 1 guy but I rang Melbourne this week because there are some murmurs that PNG may take a look at Cam Munster.
“I spoke to Matt Tripp. Trippy said we want to keep Cam Munster at this footy club we don’t want him going anywhere.
“We want to sit down with him and try to extend him so he’s a one-club man and he finishes his career at the Melbourne Storm but he hasn’t been able to commence those talks yet – I’d imagine that’ll happen pretty soon.
“And as I said there’s a bit of a whisper going around, that Braith Anasta connection with Willie might lead PNG to sound out Cam Munster.”
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Meanwhile, Nathan Cleary has made no secret of his intention to head to the open market.
Although he would like to remain a one-club player with the Penrith Panthers, he admitted that he is open to a potential move away from the club and could even see himself potentially switching codes to rugby union at the end of his current deal.
“It’s pretty hard to imagine right now, yeah,” he said last week in regards to his future.
“I haven’t really thought about it too much but trying to imagine being somewhere else, it’s tough to think of in my mind.”
The PNG Chiefs have also been linked to international playmaker Gairo Voro, try-scoring record holder Alex Johnston and Cooper Bai, the son of Papua New Guinea icon Marcus Bai.
Continuing to speak on NRL 360, Peters admitted that he has no interest in chasing NRL players who only want to join the franchise with dollar signs in their eyes.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – SEPTEMBER 22: Cameron Munster and Nathan Cleary are in the sights of the Chiefs.Source: Getty Images
Instead, he wants to land those who want to build a culture and unite a nation through the club.
“We’re going to have to look at every scenario. You can have plans in place and solutions – for me, what I want to create is a family environment. That’s what attracted me to the role,” Peters added.
“Naturally, the tax-free dollars are going to be of interest to some people initially. After that, it needs to be bigger – much bigger than that. It was that for my wife and family; she wouldn’t be coming over if it wasn’t something bigger than money.
“We need to make sure we’re getting the right people over: people that want to be there and play for the right reasons
“Because if they’re coming over for tax-free dollars, they’re not going to have an enjoyable time at all. It’s about winning rugby league games, it’s about building a culture and uniting a nation through this team.
“It’s about getting the right people involved who want to be there. If you work hard and you’re a connected team, you can do some special things.