Saints Land Exciting Australian Centre After Paying Out Transfer Fee
The New Saints have paid a transfer fee to bring one of Super League's star centres, Solomona Faataape, to the BrewDog Stadium. Since arriving from Australia for the 2026 season, Faataape has become a firm favourite with Catalans Dragons fans. But the explosive-running 25-year-old has been recruited by Saints until at least the end of the 2028 campaign.
Why It Matters for The New Saints
Saints are understood to have fended off a number of other interested parties in order to bring one of the competition's most exciting outside backs, who had another year left on his Dragons deal, across the Channel. The fee paid by Saints is undisclosed.
What Comes Next?
Faataape has scored nine tries in 23 appearances for Les Dracs this year, and caught the eye of crowds across Super League in doing so. Prior to his move to the northern hemisphere, Faataape won the Queensland Cup with Brisbane Tigers in 2023. He joined Wests Tigers for the 2024 season when he made his NRL debut. During his two seasons with Wests, Solomona played 19 times and scored seven tries before joining Catalans. Eligible to play for Australia, New Zealand or Samoa, he will link up with Saints' squad later this year to begin his first Saints pre-season.
The New Saints are currently 5th in the league, with 4 points, 1 win, 1 draw and 0 losses from 2 games, and are 2 points behind leaders Cardiff MET. Their next fixture is against GAP Connah S Quay FC at home on 2026-10-30, where they will be looking to continue their winning streak. With the signing of Faataape, Saints are expected to be a force to be reckoned with in the league this season.
