Wayne\u2019s big Latrell update… and hilarious reveal on debutant<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cI still had another year left at Brisbane and then they went and bought Pezet in the off-season. They had (Tom) Duffy and bought Pezet on what we assumed was big coin,\u201d Black said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was sort of pissed off because you hear things like \u2018you\u2019re a good chance of being the next half\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy manager had been tipped up on (the Broncos\u2019 signing of Pezet) through the grapevine and he\u2019d given me a bit of early notice that it could be happening. <\/p>\n
\u201cI was prepared for the news to come out, but it was still a shock that it actually happened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hadn\u2019t been told by anyone from the club or anything, which is probably what hurt me more.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing is promised in footy \u2026 Everyone promises you the world and no one can ever give it to you. It\u2019s a bit annoying in that sense.<\/p>\n
Black enjoyed a strong relationship with former Broncos coach Kevin Walters but when the club legend was fired at the end of the 2024 season and replaced by Michael Maguire, Black no longer knew where he stood.<\/p>\n
Coby Black at Raiders training.Source: Supplied<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Kev was there, I was getting really good feedback and it was really good,\u201d Black said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen \u2018Madge\u2019 came along and obviously different coaches, different plans.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was getting mixed messages and juggling what feedback to actually listen to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Black\u2019s promotion to first grade has been on the back of some stellar form in the NSW Cup.<\/p>\n
In ten appearances, Black has scored 94 points, good for fourth-most in the reserve grade comp.<\/p>\n
HUGE PANTHERS BOOST AS BREAKOUT STAR\u2019S $85K CALL PAYS OFF<\/p>\n
The Penrith Panthers have landed a huge signing coup after announcing the NRL\u2019s leading try-scorer Tom Jenkins had extended with the club for another three years.<\/p>\n
While the Panthers have a host of big names coming off-contract at the end of 2027, the much-improved Jenkins was one of the major priorities in the near-future given he was without a deal beyond this season.<\/p>\n
Jenkins has been a revelation for Penrith with 20 tries in just 13 games this season, while he also ranks first in the NRL for linebreaks and third in total run metres.<\/p>\n
It was a double-edged sword for the Panthers, who were benefiting from having Jenkins overperforming on such an affordable, club-friendly deal while also knowing they would be in a fight to retain his services.<\/p>\n
But in a show of loyalty, Jenkins \u2013 who started his NRL career at the club before linking up with Newcastle for a year \u2013 has signed on until the end of the 2029 season.<\/p>\n
Jenkins re-joined the club in the 2025 pre-season on an $85,000 development deal before being upgraded to a contract worth around $350,000. He would have certainly got a handsome pay rise on that figure now.<\/p>\n
\u201cTom has worked incredibly hard to establish himself at NRL level, and we are delighted that he has committed his future to the Panthers,\u201d Panthers General Manager of Rugby League Shane Elford said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has continued to develop his game and has shown great consistency in his performances.<\/p>\n
\u201cMilky understands what it means to represent the Panthers, and we look forward to seeing him continue to contribute to the team over the coming years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jenkins\u2019 extension is a huge boost for a Panthers side that is in a battle to retain a number of its stars who can speak with rival clubs from November 1, including Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo and Brian To\u2019o.<\/p>\n
Tom Jenkins scoring one of his league-leading 20 tries.Source: Supplied<\/p>\n
BEARS SIGN EXCITING YOUNG FULLBACK<\/p>\n
In perhaps the Bears\u2019 most exciting signing, promising young fullback Mason Barber has committed to the club on a three-year deal.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a huge rap on Barber, a fullback currently in the Cowboys\u2019 system.<\/p>\n
The Australian Schoolboys rep has yet to make his NRL debut but has been named on the Cowboys\u2019 extended bench on a couple of occasions this season. <\/p>\n
North Queensland had reportedly tabled an offer to Barber, but the 20-year-old was keen on a change of scenery given his path to first grade in Townsville was likely going to be blocked by another talented back in Jaxon Purdue.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe opportunity to continue my career in Western Australia with the Perth Bears was too good to refuse,\u201d Barber said via a Bears-issued statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe in the club\u2019s vision for the future and am excited to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMason is a sublimely talented player who has been on our radar for a long time now,\u201d coach Mal Meninga said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has the skill and character to make an impact for us right away while also becoming a cornerstone for the club for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barber is the 19th player to put pen to paper with the Bears. <\/p>\n
He\u2019ll compete in the off-season to start the club\u2019s inaugural season in the No. 1 jersey, although Storm star Nick Meaney is the current favourite to win the role. <\/p>\n
Mason Barber during Cowboys pre-season training. Picture: Cowboys MediaSource: News Corp Australia<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Young Raiders playmaker Coby Black says he was \u201cpissed off\u201d and \u201cshocked\u201d by the decision of his former…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":731396,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[18743,64,63,9421,4532,6173,354024,48815,763,97432,27285,3194,2504,323499,6407,761,762,158,354025,7291,354023,85,9020],"class_list":["post-731395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-adam-reynolds","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-benji-marshall","tag-canberra-raiders","tag-club-legend","tag-ex-storm-halfback","tag-form-slump","tag-fox-league","tag-heir-apparent","tag-jonah-pezet","tag-kevin-walters","tag-lifts-lid","tag-messy-exit","tag-michael-maguire","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-raiders-media","tag-ricky-stuart","tag-sam-gibson","tag-sports","tag-young-gun"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=731395"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731395\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/731396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=731395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=731395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=731395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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