{"id":423778,"date":"2026-05-12T11:08:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T11:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/423778\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T11:08:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T11:08:13","slug":"warriors-star-luke-metcalf-given-permission-to-explore-options-with-other-nrl-clubs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/423778\/","title":{"rendered":"Warriors star Luke Metcalf given permission to explore options with other NRL clubs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Luke<\/p>\n

\nLuke Metcalf
\nPhoto: Andrew Cornaga\/www.photosport.nz\n<\/p>\n

The Warriors have given star Luke Metcalf permission to talk to other clubs for next season, as they try to sort through their contract logjam among the halves.<\/p>\n

The Auckland NRL outfit has been wrestling with its roster in recent weeks, with Tanah Boyd and Chanel Harris-Tavita – both off contract at the end of this season – preferred as the starting halves combination, despite the return of Metcalf from a hamstring injury.<\/p>\n

Australian media is reporting Boyd’s contract has been extended through 2029.<\/p>\n

Re-signing Metcalf was a priority for the club, after a knee injury ended his 2025 season prematurely, while he was sitting atop the Dally M Medal standings. He was subsequently extended through 2028.<\/p>\n

During his absence, Boyd’s form has helped the Warriors to second on the competition table and made him a State of Origin contender for Queensland.<\/p>\n

Last month, coach Andrew Webster tried accommodating both his star halves by playing Metcalf at five-eighth<\/a>, but the move backfired<\/a>, resulting in their only two losses of the campaign so far and ending with Metcalf’s hamstring tweak.<\/p>\n

His management reportedly told the Warriors he preferred to play halfback and sought clarification on his future with the club<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Boyd’s apparent extension through 2029 has escalated that discontent to a request to allow him to find another home.<\/p>\n

The Warriors have given Metcalf that permission.<\/p>\n

“We will not make any further comment on this matter until a further update is provided by Luke and\/or his management,” said Warriors chief executive Cameron George.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Harris-Tavita has also been exploring his options beyond 2026, including a meeting with former Warriors coach Todd Payten, who is now in charge of North Queensland Cowboys.<\/p>\n

Harris-Tavita’s management has reportedly told clubs he is only available for a one-year contract, suggesting he may be positioning himself to join expansion club PNG Chiefs, when they join the competition in two years.<\/p>\n

Sign up for Ng\u0101 Pitopito K\u014drero<\/a>, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Luke Metcalf Photo: Andrew Cornaga\/www.photosport.nz The Warriors have given star Luke Metcalf permission to talk to other clubs…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":423779,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[48,47,42,43,49,46,44,45,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-423778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-audio","tag-current-affairs","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-podcasts","tag-public-radio","tag-radio-new-zealand","tag-rnz","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/423778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=423778"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/423778\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/423779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=423778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=423778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=423778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}