Bula looks to quit Tigers after club’s NRLW side cut his wife

Jahream Bula is now looking for a future away from the Wests Tigers, with the young star fullback reportedly disappointed the club didn’t offer his wife Aaliyah a contract for the 2026 NRLW season.

Bula was already deciding if he wanted to stay at the Campbelltown club beyond his current deal, which expires at the end of 2026, and had been leaning towards not activating a mutual option for 2027.

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Things have been accelerated there after Aaliyah, the daughter of former Bulldogs and Sea Eagles player Solomon Haumono, was told she wouldn’t be offered a full NRL Women’s contract after playing on a development deal through 2025. The 20-year-old hopeful is not expected to be signed by other clubs either, The Sporting Base understands.

Bula has a mutual option in his contract for 2027, which would see his current $700,000 salary jump to $900K, but it’s looking more and more likely he’ll forgo the payday – that would need the Tigers to agree, mind you – to instead speak to other clubs.

Expansion sides the Perth Bears and Papua New Guinea Chiefs both shape as likely options for the 23-year-old, who has already played 57 games for the Tigers in the NRL and scored 23 tries since making his debut in early 2023.

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Other clubs may take a look at the youngster, too, especially after he scored four tries for Fiji against the Cook Islands just last weekend. While he may not be considered one of the elite No. 1s in the game, clubs like the St George Illawarra Dragons or Canterbury Bulldogs would be interested in gambling on him emerging as a premier talent.

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Should Bula leave, he’ll be the latest in a long line of youngsters who have quit the Tigers for various reasons. The most recent example came in mid-2025, when star halfback Lachlan Galvin broke his contract to join the Canterbury Bulldogs. James Tedesco, Josh Addo-Carr, Mitchell Moses, and Ryan Papenhuyzen are other superstars who started out at the Tigers.

Bula had in May said he was “happy at the club” – but that was before his wife was dropped.