NRL 2024: Valentine Holmes opens up on Cowboys exit ahead of elimination final vs Knights

As he prepares for what could be his final game for the Cowboys, Valentine Holmes has opened up on the salary cap squeeze that forced him out of the club.

Dragons-bound Valentine Holmes has spoken of his heartbreak at leaving North Queensland as the Maroons Origin star vowed to deliver a premiership parting gift to the Cowboys.

Holmes is embarking on The Last Dance in Townsville with the marquee Red V recruit shaping a key strike weapon for the Cowboys in Saturday night’s sudden-death finals blockbuster against Newcastle.

When Holmes signed a mega six-year deal with the club in 2020 after failing to crack the NFL, the speedster had dreams of finishing his career at the Cowboys and winning titles in the tropics.

Valentine Holmes has opened up on his heartbreak at leaving the Cowboys, after salary cap pressures force him to take up a deal with the Dragons. Picture: Getty Image

The dream collapsed three weeks ago when Holmes inked a three-year deal with the Dragons from next season as his monster $1.05 million contract imposed salary-cap pressures on the Cowboys.

As he prepares for the qualifying final before a sold out Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Holmes, 29, opened up about his departure from the Cowboys, admitting he wanted to honour his deal with the club.

“It will be hard to move on,” said Holmes, who was contracted to the Cowboys until the end of 2025.

“I can’t be too disappointed because I’ve still got a job for the next three years, which is nice, but in an ideal world and in a perfect world, I would have liked to have stayed in Townsville.

“This is home for me. It’s where I get to play in front of my parents and my wife’s parents and family.

“Townsville will always be home for me, it’s a place where I can always come back after my commitments in the NRL are finished.

“At the end of the day, you’ve got to look after your family and your job and do what’s best for myself as a professional footballer.”

Holmes has vowed to deliver a premiership parting gift to the Cowboys. Picture: Getty Images

With Jason Taumalolo, Kyle Feldt and Jordan McLean, Holmes is just one of four Cowboys who know what it takes to win a premiership.

The 21-Test World Cup winner was 21 years old when he claimed a maiden premiership ring in Cronulla’s 2016 grand-final defeat of the Storm and almost a decade later, Holmes wants to exit a winner.

“I would love to help win a premiership for the Cowboys,” he said.

“Townsville is where I was born and raised and the club I supported when I was a kid.

“I went to all the games at Dairy Farmers (Stadium) out in the suburbs and I pictured myself wearing this Cowboys jersey and holding that trophy one day.

“Anything’s possible at the moment.

“We’ve had our ups and downs and it’s important we are mentally ready for the Knights, but I truly believe that, as a team, we have the belief as a group to do some damage in the finals and go the whole way.”

Holmes’ exit helped the Cowboy extend Reuben Cotter. Picture: Getty Images

Underlining his club-first mentality, Holmes accepts the pressure his massive salary was putting on the club.

One of just 16 current $1 million players in the NRL, Holmes’ departure to the Dragons at season’s end helped the Cowboys free-up the funds to upgrade co-captain Reuben Cotter and plan for the future.

“I knew that (the salary cap) would probably come into it,” he said.

“There’s a few lads on back-ended contracts here and it probably doesn’t leave the club in the best scenario moving forward trying to sign some of our young lads.

“I get it. It’s a business. It’s nothing personal. There’s got to be someone that’s got to move on and make way for guys coming through.

“I didn’t want the club to lose five or six blokes just to try and keep one bloke (Holmes).

“I’m comfortable with the decision now. I’ve come good with it, we’ll leave on good terms and I still want to finish on a high with the Cowboys.”

Holmes was the 2022 Dally M centre of the year and while he has been erratic this season, he was electric in last week’s demolition of the Bulldogs.

Scott Drinkwater has praised the work of Holmes, admitting the Cowboys will miss his attacking brilliance. Picture: Getty Images

Cowboys fullback Scott Drinkwater said the club will miss Holmes’ attacking brilliance and goalkicking.

“Val’s been great for our attack,” he said. “He’s a real strike weapon for us out wide and it’s comforting to know we have a guy like Val who can threaten the opposition.

“Hopefully he can be at his best this week against the Knights.”