Penrith Panthers fans furious after cheeky Jarome Luai Instagram post: ‘Pretty disrespectful’
The Tigers have been forced to delete a photoshopped graphic of superstar Jarome Luai wearing the club’s jersey from their social media accounts after upsetting the Panthers.
On Wednesday, Luai finally confirmed he has signed a five-year contract to join the Wests Tigers from 2025, bringing an end to the biggest trade saga of the NRL off-season.
Penrith’s three-time premiership-winning five-eighth had been linked with the Tigers for months and made the move official at a snap press conference in Sydney.
The deal is believed to be worth in excess of $1million per season and is a major coup for a Tigers side that’s in the midst of a 12-year finals drought.
The Tigers celebrated their new signing on social media by posting shots of Luai in a Tigers jersey, but it reportedly upset the Panthers.
The Tigers later deleted the post and posted a mock up instead of Luai in a NSW Blues uniform.
‘How low brow….Putting a player whose still contracted to an opposition club, in your colours 12 months too early. Try and stay classy,’ wrote one fan on X.
‘Done him dirty with that photoshop,’ replied another.
‘Pretty disrespectful, photoshopping him in our jersey when he’s still a Panther,’ said a third.
Last month, the 26-year-old informed his teammates of his intention to move from the Panthers, who handed him his debut in 2018 but could not match the Tigers’ big-money offer.
But no contract was formally signed at the time as new Tigers coach Benji Marshall and club management put the finishing touches on their offer.
Under the NRL’s new transfer rules, Luai was required to give the Panthers a 10-day window in which they could try to convince him to stay put.
But resigned to losing their flamboyant playmaker, the Panthers are understood to have waived that right this week, paving the way for the move to be confirmed.
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