Cowboys confirm details of monster Valentine Holmes deal
It’s official. Valentine Holmes has joined the Cowboys and the length of the deal is far longer than expected — and the cash is eye-watering.
Cowboys
Don't miss out on the headlines from Cowboys. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Valentine Holmes has set his sights on bringing another premiership to Townsville after the Cowboys on Sunday secured the Queensland Origin star to a mega deal worth almost $6 million.
Six months of speculation is finally over with North Queensland officially signing Holmes to a lucrative six-year contract that ties the tryscoring machine to the Cowboys until the end of 2025.
The Courier-Mail understands the deal is worth $5.7 million in total, with Holmes set to earn in excess of $800,000 next season before joining the NRL’s elite $1 million-a-season club in 2021.
Stream over 50 sports Live & On-Demand with KAYO SPORTS on your TV, computer, mobile or tablet. Just $25/month, no lock-in contract. Get your 14-day free trial and start streaming instantly >
While it is not the richest deal in Cowboys history — Jason Taumalolo’s 10-year contract still reigns supreme — Holmes’ salary is on a par with the big bucks North Queensland outlaid to retain champion halfback Johnathan Thurston in 2013.
Just 24 hours after being released by the New York Jets following his failed bid to play NFL, Holmes wasted no time, returning to Australia and flying to Townsville for talks with Cowboys hierarchy.
Holmes met with Cowboys coach Paul Green and football-operations chief Peter Parr, the trio discussing their grand plans for the Maroons speedster before he formally inked the richest deal of his NRL career.
As part of the bumper deal, the 24-year-old Holmes is keen to cement the No.1 jumper in a move that puts him on a collision course with Queensland teammate Kalyn Ponga for the famous Maroons’ fullback spot.
DONE DEAL. Valentine Holmes has signed a SIX YEAR deal with the Cowboys. Worth $5.7 million. Great news for Cowboys and Queensland. More to come @cmail_sport
— Pete Badel (@badel_cmail) November 24, 2019
Holmes won a premiership with the Sharks in 2016 and the Townsville junior is primed to reignite the Cowboys as a title contender next season following their epic defeat of the Broncos in the 2015 NRL grand final.
Holmes will launch his pre-season with the Cowboys this week as he looks to establish a backline strike-force with North Queensland skipper and playmaker Michael Morgan.
“This is a wonderful signing for our club,” Parr said.
“It wasn’t long ago that Valentine was one of the best players in the competition before his courageous decision to go to the NFL. His form in 2018 was as good as any player in the NRL, particularly in the second half of that season.
“He’s a proven big game player, he’s won a grand final and he’s played some terrific football for both Queensland and Australia.
“Valentine has been a top-class performer at wing and fullback and we’ve made no secret we had a desire to strengthen our outside back stocks.
“Val’s record speaks for itself and we couldn’t be more excited about securing him at the Cowboys for the next six seasons.”
The Cowboys held talks with unwanted Rooster Latrell Mitchell last week but North Queensland will not be able to afford him after outlaying millions to snare Holmes.
Holmes scored 66 tries from 105 games for the Sharks and has the youth, speed and attacking class to challenge James Tedesco as the NRL’s No.1 fullback at the Cowboys.
The Cowboys have been linked with Holmes for months but they were finally able to formalise a deal after he severed ties with the New York Jets.
“A number of NRL clubs made inquiries but Val’s preference was always the Cowboys,” his manager Chris Orr said.
“Val is a Townsville junior and his wife is from the area so he is looking forward to re-uniting with his family and bringing premiership success to the Cowboys.”
Originally published as Cowboys confirm details of monster Valentine Holmes deal