St Helens have confirmed that captain and star prop Matty Lees will leave the club at the end of the 2027 season.
Lees, who is currently sidelined for the remainder of the year with a knee injury, will depart after over a decade in the first team to join the PNG Chiefs in the NRL.
The 28-year-old will become Willie Peters’ third-ever signing, after the new franchise begin to formulate their squad ahead of their inaugural season in the southern hemisphere competition. The Chiefs have already signed NRL superstars Alex Johnston and Jarome Luai ahead of 2028.
Lees, who currently sits on 199 St Helens appearances, will have one final season at the Red Vee, a club he has been at since he was 16 years old.
An England international, the prop started all three games for England against Australia in the Ashes series, and in total has 12 appearances for his country.
Saints have already signed his replacement, with former Canterbury Bulldogs man Daniel Suluka-Fifita joining the club over the past week.
With another season and a half to add more trophies, Lees’ glistening Saints career sees him currently sat with four Grand Finals, three League Leaders Shields, a Challenge Cup and a World Club Challenge.
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St Helens star Matty Lees to leave at end of 2027
Following the news, St Helens Chairman Eamonn McManus said: “Matty’s commitment to the St.Helens’ First Team and its successes has been immense over the last decade. He has won every honour with us and will go down as a legend of the Club. I’m sure that he will carry on in that vein when he recovers from injury and that he will be giving absolutely everything, as only he knows how to, in the 2027 season.
“Matty has had an ambition to play in the NRL for some time, and we respect that, particularly after so many years of putting his body on the line for us. He had an NRL break clause in his existing contract for 2028 and, therefore, in turn, he has shown respect to us by honouring his contractual obligations to the full.
“We will wish him and his family every success in his new adventure in Papua New Guinea when the time comes, but that is clearly some time away yet. There is much, much more for Matty to achieve with the Saints before then, and I’m confident that he will.
“Finally, we would like to put on record our appreciation of the professionalism and cooperation exhibited by the senior management of the PNG Chiefs in their dealings on this matter with our club.”
