Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2020 www.photosport.nz
The PNG Chiefs have confirmed the signing of the NRL’s top try-scorer Alex Johnston.
Johnston broke Ken Irvine’s 54-year record of 212 NRL tries earlier this year, and has now taken his tally to 221 tries for South Sydney.
His grandmother was born in PNG and raised in Sandaun Province.
The Chiefs said Johnston adds immediate firepower to the their roster and the signing signals the club’s commitment to building an attacking brand of football with a connection to its people.
“On the field, Alex is a game-breaker, a record holder and a figure of pride amongst fans in both Australia and Papua New Guinea,” the club said.
“Off the field, his professionalism, humility and his connection to PNG align perfectly with the values the club is being built on – community, family, and pride in representing PNG and the Pacific.”
Fans storm the field to celebrate South Sydney’s Alex Johnston breaking the NRL try scoring record.
Photo: ABC
Johnston’s signing follows the signing of Toa Samoa playmaker Jarome Luai for the club’s 2028 NRL debut.
Johnston is the first Kumul signed by the new NRL franchise.
But the Chiefs’ general manager of football Michael Chammas said there would be more.
“We’ve identified the Papua New Guinean players that we’d love to have in there and there’s obviously 18 months before they get together, so there’s no doubt that this team is going to have a strong contingent of Papua New Guinean players.”
Chammas said the team will be sustainable through the development programs they build.
“What we want is for guys like Jarome [Luai] to teach the young Papua New Guinean boys what it is to be successful, what it is to be a professional, to be disciplined and the sacrifices you have to make.
“That’s what Jarome will instil in others and that’s what other players that we bring have to instil into the young PNG boys, who might not understand right now what it takes to be successful, what it takes to be an NRL player.
“They will instil that in them and those young guys will then go back and they will teach the next generation.”
Chammas said Luai would also have an impact off the field and a visit to an international school in Port Moresby had given him a glimpse of that.
“He walked past the classroom, and these little girls just sort of looked and when they realised who it was they just started screaming,” Chammas said.
“The happiness that he will bring to people and the joy he will bring to their lives, he felt that firsthand.”
But the NRL’s 19th franchise can’t speak to other players coming off contract in 2027 until 1 November – the day after PNG’s final World Cup pool match against England.
Former South Sydney and St George Illawarra halfback Willie Peters was named as head coach in March.
He said this coaching opportunity “transcends rugby league”.
