Ricky Stuart snubbed as Luciano Lieilua leaves Cowboys immediately

Star forward Luciano Leilua has got his wish and is making an immediate, blockbuster move away from North Queensland.

The plot thickens in the Luciano Leilua sweepstakes. Photo: Getty Images

Luciano Leilua has reportedly snubbed the Canberra Raiders to sign a blockbuster deal with the Dragons.

As first reported by News Corp, Leilua has become St George Illawarra coach Shane Flanagan’s biggest signing and has reportedly agreed to a monster $2.7 million deal.

According to Fox Sports, the deal will see Leilua join the Dragons immediately and he may even play in the club’s pre-season hit-out this weekend.

The 27-year-old had requested an immediate release from the Cowboys, less than a month before the start of the NRL season and it emerged recently he had put an extraordinary $3.6m price tag on himself.

The Dragons broke the bank to snare Leilua’s signature in a deal that will see the former Cowboys star play in the Red V through to the end of the 2026 season.

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It was reported last week the Raiders made a late play to recruit Leilua, but the damaging ball-runner instead opted to return to the Dragons — the club he debuted with in 2016 and played 43 games.

While the Dragons have reached deep into their wallet to pull off the deal, the club benefits from the fact the Cowboys have already paid Leilua for four months of his 2024 wages, meaning the club will only have to cough up around $500,000 in 2024.

It is another blow for the Raiders with the club missing out on several recruitment targets in the past 12 months.

Leilua is a bustling second-rower. Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images

The Raiders now have potential salary cap space, which could increase as the club awaits the final decision on Corey Harawira-Naera’s medical retirement.

If Harawira-Naera is medically retired, it will free up about $650,000.

Hawawira-Naera suffered a seizure on-field last year. Coach Ricky Stuart said it was a “tragedy” and said the 28-year-old is “very unlikely to play again”.

Meanwhile, Leilua and his management recently met with Dragons.

The Raiders recruited Panthers forward Zac Hosking over the off-season, with a strong forward pack including Joe Tapine, Josh Papali’i, Hudson Young, Elliott Whitehead and Corey Horsburgh.

Leilua himself is a Samoan rep. Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images

NRL icon Wendell Sailor said he’d like to welcome Leilua back at the Red V.

“I’d like to see him take a little less and go back to the Dragons because in the next three or four years he could do anything in the game,” Sailor said.

“He’s a great talent but he hasn’t reached his pinnacle yet.”

Leilua has played solid football since joining the Cowboys at the start of the 2022 season, however his time up north has been plagued with controversy.

In October 2022, he was charged with two counts of assault but those charges wound up being dropped last year.

More recently, Leilua was caught drink driving and had his licence suspended for a month.

Originally published as Ricky Stuart snubbed as Luciano Lieilua leaves Cowboys immediately