Zac Lomax set to confirm new club

He was released from the final two seasons of his deal with the Dragons.

WRITER | April 12, 2024 - 5:21pm

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After being granted a release from the remainder of his contract at the Dragons at the end of the season, Zac Lomax has reportedly confirmed his new club.

While the deal is not scheduled to be until the end of this season, Zac Lomax will join the Parramatta Eels on an expected four-year deal worth $2.6 million, per The Sydney Morning Herald.

This would see him earn approximately $650,000 per season, which is a significant pay cut from his current salary in which he was meant to be earning $850,000 in 2025 and $875,000 in 2026.

The decrease in salary for Lomax is due to Mitchell Moses being on a salary of approximately $1 million per season and Clinton Gutherson and Junior Paulo earning upwards of $900,000 per year on their current contracts.

The publication reports that the club and Lomax's management are in the final stages of negotiating the contract that will see him there until at least the end of the 2028 NRL season - and could be formally announced as soon as next week.

“I met with Zac at my home,” Brad Arthur told the Herald last week after meeting with Lomax at his home.

“We've got genuine interest and we want to bolster our squad. We always said we were short an outside back. He's off contract for '25.

“I was very impressed with him. He seems like a very mature young man who knows what he wants to get out of his life."

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 01: Zac Lomax of the Dragons makes a break during the round 24 NRL match between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Wests Tigers at Sydney Cricket Ground on September 01, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

Since his debut against the South Sydney Rabbitohs, Lomax has played 98 NRL matches, scoring 683 points (39 tries, 263 goals, and one field goal).

His arrival at the Eels would create a formidable backline for Clinton Gutherson, Maika Sivo, Penisini, Lomax, Sean Russell, Dylan Brown, and Mitchell Moses once the latter returns from injury.

“There will be stories going around that we've had arguments,” Dragons coach Shane Flanagan recently said on Lomax's complicated situation.

“There's been none of that. We've had a lot of good conversations around it. As you can see with his football, he's happy to be here and he's putting the effort in. That's all we can ask.

“Zac has made a decision that he wants to leave the club. The club has made a decision to let him go from the last two years.

"It's not the first time this has happened and it's not going to be the last. Zac is here for the rest of the year and hopefully this is the last time we speak about.”