NRL 2021: Roosters rookie Ben Thomas the cheapest player in the game

This is the NRL’s cheapest footy player in decades — but he’s only one piece of this remarkable team of cheapies.

Sydney Roosters prop Ben Thomas celebrates with teammates. Picture: NRL Imagery

MEET the NRL’s cheapest footy player in decades … the Sydney Roosters’ $5000 front-rower Ben Thomas.

That’s not a misprint. Five. Thousand. Dollars. A. Year.

Thomas is a wonderful throwback story to an era when our rugby league heroes all had day jobs.

Especially at a glamour club such as the Sydney Roosters with their billionaire chairman Nick Politis and a host of high-profile, million-dollar, latte-loving footballers.

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Compare him to another NRL bench forward, the Gold Coast’s David Fifita, who earns $23,000 a week.

Thomas is a 23-year-old middle forward who began the season with the North Sydney Bears in NSW Cup while working as a builder’s labourer on $35-an-hour to pay the bills.

He will start off the bench against the South Sydney Rabbitohs on Friday night in a cut-price Roosters outfit that is missing more than $6 million of their salary cap from the worst run of injuries in the club’s history.

No Cordner, no Friend, no Radley, no Keary, no Crichton, no Waerea-Hargreaves, no Morris twins.

Sydney Roosters prop Ben Thomas. NRL Imagery

Ben Thomas made his debut this year.

And no problem when you can piece together the most remarkable team of cheapies under the magnificent leadership of James Tedesco.

This is an almost unrecognisable team that includes three players who don’t even have a photo of themselves on the Roosters’ website – Thomas, Brad Abbey and Ben Marschke.

Three boys who were supposed to be playing NSW Cup all year for the Bears.

Abbey is on a $30,000 contract and Marschke makes $60,000.

The NRL recently changed the rules to allow clubs to go outside their top 30 players to cover for injuries.

Since debuting for the Roosters, Thomas is now on a $1000-a-week training contract and an extra $3000 match payment for every first grade game.

For Thomas, the road to the NRL has been a long one. He played in the Roosters’ 2016 NYC premiership-winning team that miraculously came from being down 28-6 at halftime to win the grand final.

His teammates that day included Joey Manu, Victor Radley, Nat Butcher, Sitili Tupouniua and Paul Momirovski — all of whom have excelled in first grade.

The Roosters are missing 13 superstars.

Now it’s Thomas’s turn, via the Wyong Roos and the North Sydney Bears.

It’s a much deserved reward for a young player who lacked size, but not heart, and refused to give up.

At the beginning of the season he would get to the gym every morning at 4.30am on a program to increase his weight and strength.

Then it was on the tools for a full day’s work for Nigel Radley, a builder and the father of teammate Victor Radley.

Coach Trent Robinson couldn’t be prouder.

“He’s a good man, everyone loves him,” Robinson said, “He’s actually a really skilful player but he was always a little bit small.

“He’s a player’s player. Always does his job and works really hard. He’s a real old school front-rower who you can always rely on.”