The Canberra Raiders are poised to announce their first female recruits in the coming days after the NRL paved the way for the contracting window to open on Wednesday.
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After months of delays and uncertainty, NRLW players can finally get contract certainty and an agreement between the NRL and the Rugby League Players' Association is set to trigger a signing frenzy.
The Raiders are one of four expansion teams joining the competition this year and while coach Darrin Borthwick has been able to speak to players and make verbal offers, he has nothing set in stone just months before the first game.
The NRL and players' association deal caught clubs on the hop on Tuesday, but official contracts will likely be signed in the next day or two and announcements about the first official female Raiders made as early as next week.
NSW State of Origin star and Australian World Cup-winning lock Simaima Taufa and Mackenzie Wiki - the daughter of club great Rueben - are two of the players already linked to the new Green Machine.
The draw is still being finalised, but it's understood the Raiders will likely start their season on the road before a men's and women's double-header at Canberra Stadium on July 29.
It's the same day the Raiders men play their round-22 clash against the Newcastle Knights, but it's unclear if the Raiders women will also play the Knights or another NRLW team on the same day.
The NRL and RLPA agreed to the financial terms for the women's collective bargaining agreement in February, but spent the past six weeks hammering out the finer conditions of bridging deals.
Clubs have spent the past five months talking with players and making verbal offers, but until this point none have been legally binding.
The news comes too late for at least one player, with rookie Tayla Curtis having a two-year offer at St George Illawarra worth $64,000 gone to waste when she ruptured her ACL this month.
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Almost every other player has been training and playing in state competitions with the same risk hanging over their head, creating significant stress and anxiety.
When clubs begin signing on Wednesday, they will have a $900,000 salary cap to work with for their 24-woman squad, which will go out to $1,518,000 by 2027.
The minimum contract will be $30,000, and that will go up to $50,600 by the end of the agreement in 2027.
"We are extremely excited to be officially opening the contract window for the 2023 NRL Women's Premiership," NRL boss Andrew Abdo said.
"This is a watershed moment for rugby league.
"We are pleased to have agreed the key terms of the NRLW contracting model with the RLPA and clubs resulting in a landmark new salary cap, minimum wage and player benefits."
A draw for this year's nine-round regular season and two-week finals series will be released next week, with the competition to begin on the weekend of July 22-23.
It's also understood further expansion is most likely to come in 2025, with the likelihood the competition will grow to 12 teams.
"I would like to thank the entire NRLW playing group for their determination and commitment to securing strong payments, benefits, and entitlements for current and future players," players' association chief executive Clint Newton said.
"The new NRLW contracting structure will play a significant role in retaining and recruiting the best talent, helping with the continual growth in participation and exposure for the women's game."
A game-wide collective bargaining agreement is closer to being finalised, after the men's one expired last November and rolled over.
The players' union had at times threatened strike action during the prolonged negotiations, but last weekend ended a boycott on NRL promotions that had stood since January.
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