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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Perth Bears coach Mal Meninga has quashed speculation that he isn\u2019t fully committed to the fledgling franchise and hit back at criticism about an apparent inability to attract big-name recruits, declaring: \u201cI firmly believe we have marquees in the making.\u201d<\/p>\n Meninga is in the process of assembling his inaugural roster ahead of Perth\u2019s entry to the NRL next season, but he doesn\u2019t have the lure of tax-free dollars that are available to the PNG Chiefs.<\/p>\n There has been speculation that the rugby league Immortal\u2019s commitment had wavered after the club was beset by internal politics, including the departure of right-hand man and football general manager David Sharpe.<\/p>\n But in his first interview since Sharpe\u2019s exit, Meninga has opened up about his resolution to see the job through, the quality of the squad assembled so far and his vision for rugby league in Western Australia.<\/p>\n Most pointedly, the 65-year-old refuted suggestions that he\u2019s walking away from the challenge.<\/p>\n \u201cIt upsets me and disappoints me in a way,\u201d Meninga told this masthead.<\/p>\n \u201cI know I haven\u2019t been out and said anything \u2013 because I\u2019m not that type of person. I\u2019m doing this for the right reasons. Everyone in this organisation is doing it for the right reasons.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to leave our legacy piece. I\u2019ve said from the beginning: \u2018Why am I doing this? Why do I want to go back into coaching and put myself through this?\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s all about legacy, honestly. I don\u2019t have any other deep reason why.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, there have been rumours around that I get paid well, but it\u2019s beyond what you get paid. It\u2019s using my experience and my love of the game and my profile in the game.<\/p>\n \u201cMy \u2018why?\u2019 is I want to leave the game in a better place. I can\u2019t see any better option to do that than in Perth and help rugby league in Western Australia be a popular sport.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to build respect in the community over here. They\u2019re the reasons why I do it. I don\u2019t need to protect who I am, what I\u2019ve done or why I\u2019m doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n Internal dramas<\/p>\n Meninga and Sharpe have a close bond, dating back to their time together at Canberra. However, Sharpe moved on \u2013 after eight months in the role \u2013 following a fallout with Bears chief executive Anthony De Ceglie<\/a>.<\/p>\n Meninga had also pushed for former Gold Coast recruitment manager Ezra Howe to assemble the Bears roster, but the NRL refused to register him after the Titans accused him of breaching the terms of his employment contract.<\/p>\n \u201cThere have been hiccups, there has been conflict,\u201d Meninga said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat startup business, industry or organisation doesn\u2019t have conflict, doesn\u2019t have differences of opinion?<\/p>\n \u201cI know it\u2019s disappointing from my point of view, but I move on. You\u2019ve got to move on, because of my \u2018why?\u2019 Those things you have to contend with, you have to reflect on, you have to grow from it.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the attitude internally for all of us, not just me. I wanted them close to me \u2013 it just hasn\u2019t worked out, unfortunately.\u201d<\/p>\n Lack of a marquee man<\/p>\n The Bears have officially signed 18 players. Those who have committed to the club include Toby Sexton, Scott Sorensen, Tyran Wishart, Nick Meaney, Siosifa Talakai and Josh Curran.<\/p>\n However, the Bears have been criticised for being unable to attract a marquee man at a time when four-time premiership-winning playmaker Jarome Luai has been trumpeted as the Papua New Guinea Chiefs\u2019 \u201cCoded Player 001\u201d.<\/p>\n However, Meninga is comfortable with how his list is coming together.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve come to the conclusion that I\u2019m really happy with where I am, as far as the club is, certainly regarding the roster management,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI believe in the players, I believe we\u2019re gathering up a strong, deep roster. We get criticised because of [a lack of a] marquee, but it doesn\u2019t mean I\u2019m wrong or our team is wrong in our decision-making.<\/p>\n \u201cI firmly believe we have marquees in the making. We\u2019re going to build a culture and environment that\u2019s sustainable \u2013 that\u2019s what we\u2019re after. The people that we\u2019ve recruited are players with a lot of upside and can be here for a long time if we build what I call a shared experience with stability in our roster, while we develop our kids in elite programs.\u201d<\/p>\n Meninga pointed to the fact that the Dolphins were also criticised for apparently lacking a marquee player under Wayne Bennett in their first year, but were nonetheless competitive from the outset.<\/p>\n \u201cI can assure all of the Perth Bears family that every player we\u2019ve got has strong ambitions around leadership and wanting to be successful,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re doing it for the right reasons over here \u2026 I\u2019m not worried about marquees, I\u2019m worried about character. People coming over for the right reasons \u2026 A marquee player may represent leadership and talent, but what\u2019s to say we don\u2019t sign a player at half that value who can represent that now and into the future? That\u2019s up to the coaching team, that\u2019s up to us to produce marquees.\u201c Uneven playing field<\/p>\n Some of the game\u2019s sharpest minds \u2013 including premiership-winning coaches Wayne Bennett, Ivan Cleary and Trent Robinson \u2013 feel that the Bears should be given additional assistance to entice players. To date, that hasn\u2019t come to pass, so PNG has a huge advantage in attracting players, who won\u2019t need to pay tax on their earnings. For instance, to match Luai\u2019s base salary of $3.6 million over three years at the Chiefs, Perth would need to outlay about $6.6 million from their salary cap. And that\u2019s before third-party deals are considered, which are also tax-free at the Chiefs.<\/p>\n Meninga was making no complaints about Perth\u2019s lot.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m more concerned with setting up the foundation pillars and the cultural bit where it creates a sustainable business,\u201d Meninga said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only thing I want to add is that when they sign a player \u2013 and they have some wonderful concessions, don\u2019t get me wrong, it makes you jealous at times, I\u2019m not going to deny those feelings \u2013 that it\u2019s at market value.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the common thread with every club \u2013 when you register a player, it\u2019s deemed market value, and you get ticked off on it. That\u2019s my only comment on it.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we sign someone to a good contract worth $500,000, that it be equal when they sign someone on that notional or market value. So it\u2019s $500,000, not $300,000 and you double your money because of the tax implications.\u201d<\/p>\n Coaching in clubland<\/p>\n Meninga was inducted as the 13th Immortal after a storied playing career for the Raiders, Maroons and Kangaroos. As a coach, he guided the Maroons to nine State of Origin series wins from 10 series, while also overseeing two Australian World Cup victories.<\/p>\n It is an unprecedented record of success with the clipboard, but some critics have seized upon the fact that this will be his first club head-coaching gig since 2001.<\/p>\n Related Article \u201cI haven\u2019t been a head coach, but I\u2019ve been in clubland for a while,\u201d said Meninga, who has held various roles with the Raiders and Titans in recent years.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve coached at those rep levels, so it\u2019s not as if I\u2019m naive to it.\u201d<\/p>\n Spreading the league gospel<\/p>\n AFL is the biggest sport in Western Australia, and garnering media coverage has proven difficult. However, Meninga is confident that the club will win over locals and play in front of packed houses at HBF Park.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will fill our stadium. We will do that every home game,\u201d Meninga said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to gain the respect of that sporting community. We\u2019re the Perth Bears, I\u2019m comfortable we\u2019re putting things together to make the Western Australian sporting community proud of us. We need to build respect, we\u2019re not taking over \u2026<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to be competitive. We\u2019re going to create an environment where it\u2019s going to be very difficult to beat us over here.\u201d<\/p>\n News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n![\"Mal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/86a63475dceaf7f6e48be038c8f9aad22ebd904a.jpeg\")
Mal Meninga opens up on his job with the Perth Bears.Trevor Collens<\/p>\n![\"Former](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/722375cf9855115a19c4ade255e2829548b8d14c.jpeg\")
Former Bears official David Sharpe.Alex Ellinghausen<\/p>\n![\"Storm](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/096d2b04af8178390eb471223dc59d26c7b918b0.jpeg\")
Storm utility Tyran Wishart is one of the Bears\u2019 top recruits.Getty Images<\/p>\n
This masthead revealed that Cronulla co-captain Cameron McInnes has tabled a two-year deal.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Jarome](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/e38fc9ac7ca6da2180293aafafa67360fc16543b.jpeg\")
Jarome Luai will join the PNG Chiefs in 2028.Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Mal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3828bf93d0434b479c69dec597189f50fb2d528c.jpeg\")
Mal Meninga is fully committed to the Perth Bears.Trevor Collens<\/p>\n![\"Cameron](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/d51f48b6cca345dea62c0a6419e8e113e4d581a4.jpeg\")
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