The huge transfer fee NRL clubs will have to pay to sign Jack Welsby

The transfer fee that it would take an NRL club to lure Jack Welsby away from St Helens has now been revealed.

The star fullback has intensified interest from down under after his stunning displays over the last couple of weeks as St Helens were crowned World Champions.

This came on the back of an impressive World Cup too and now NRL clubs are keeping an eye on him.

But due to the fact his contract doesn’t expire until 2025 getting him now would take a huge transfer fee.

Recently, Wests Tigers paid Wigan Warriors $250,000 for John Bateman whilst a similar figure was offered to Salford Red Devils for Brodie Croft after he won the Man of Steel and prior to him signing a deal until 2030.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Welsby would command a $1 million transfer fee and would be on an NRL contract worth $2.75 million.

However, NRL clubs could have found a way around this.

The suggestion is that an NRL club will offer him a contract for 2026, once his St Helens contract has expired.

Then, once he signs the dotted line lobby for an early release offering a reduced fee ahead of the 2025 season.

This would mean that Welsby would remain with St Helens this year and next before leaving ahead of the 2025 season.

“What you’d do is sign him for 2026, ’27 and ’28 and then try and work hard to get him out of St Helens for 2025,” said one NRL official to the Daily Telegraph.

“With a year to go, the NRL club would then pay St Helens a transfer fee.

“Clubs will look at signing him for three years from 2026 – announce it and not make any further statement – before starting to raise an early release with St Helens after 2024.

“St Helens might say: ‘He’s going next year anyway, we’ve had him for ’23 and ’24 so let’s allow him to go provided there’s a transfer fee paid’. He could be here in 20 months.”