The Perth Bears are reportedly on the cusp of signing Sean Russell from Parramatta , and Bulldogs forward Josh Curran could be the n...
The Perth Bears are reportedly on the cusp of signing Sean Russell from Parramatta, and Bulldogs forward Josh Curran could be the next cab off the rank. Mal Meninga and the Bears are assembling their roster for their inaugural NRL season in 2027.
They've already inked deals for Toby Sexton, Liam Henry, Harry Newman, Iszac Fa’asuamaleaui, Luke Smith and Emarly Bitungane. And the Daily Telegraph reported on Friday that Russell and Curran are 'expected' to be amongst the Bears' next wave of signings.
Russell has reportedly agreed to a long-term deal to join Perth, which is believed to be for four years. The outside back will likely replace Zac Lomax on the wing for Parramatta in 2026, but the Eels are now facing the prospect of having to replace him as well.
The 23-year-old has played 61 first-grade games since debuting for his junior club in 2021. The Eels were keen to retain him, but reportedly couldn't match the Bears' offer.
As for Curran, the forward has played 106 NRL games across stints with the Roosters, Warriors and Bulldogs. He was arguably the Bulldogs' best forward in 2024, but seemed to be starved of minutes in 2025 with Viliame Kikau and Jacob Preston being 80-minute edge back-rowers.
Curran can play front-row or back-row, and his best position appears to be lock. He seemed to fall out of favour at the Bulldogs in 2025 as coach Cameron Ciraldo preferred a more ball-playing lock like Kurt Mann. If he joins the Bears for 2027 he'd be their first signing with over 100 games of NRL experience.
Wests Tigers confident Jahream Bula will stay
Meanwhile, the Wests Tigers' interim CEO Shaun Mielekamp has stated the club is confident fullback Jahream Bula will re-sign soon. Bula has been linked to the Bulldogs to join former teammate Lachie Galvin, but the Tigers believe he'll stay.
"We do have a player who wants to stay. We’ve got a club who wants him to stay. We’ve got a coach who wants him to stay. So, you start there and you go, 'right, things are gonna be okay'," Mielekamp said on SEN radio on Friday.
"It’s really just a matter of just working really closely with his agent and getting through what is the best model to make sure that we unlock this moving forward. It's still a little early to actually definitively say how it’ll play out, but I’m very, very confident speaking to Jahream himself directly, and feeling really positive that everyone wants this to work. We just need to dot the I’s and cross the T's and that'll take care of itself before the season kicks off."
