Reports from down under have linked Catalans Dragons another NRL transfer, this time from the Penrith Panthers.
The Dragons are known for their impressive pull of Aussie talent, with the likes of James Maloney and Mitchell Pearce representing them in previous years, Tevita Pangai Jr at the club currently and Toby Sexton joining in 2026.
They are now set to add another overseas import to their side ahead of next season with NRL news outlet, Zero Tackle, reporting that Penrith rising talent, Zac Lipowicz, will make the move over to the south of France.
Who is Zac Lipowicz?
A second rower by trade, Lipowicz has been a regular for the Panthers NSW cup teams in the last few seasons, making 43 appearances.
The 23-year-old has also filled in at prop and loose forward, and will provide strong depth and versatility to the Dragons pack.
Despite never playing in the NRL, he featured for the Panthers first-team in the ‘pre-season challenge’ at the start of the year.
He already has international honours in his career, after representing Poland in 2023, where he scored a try in a strong win over North Macedonia.
His stats in the NSW Cup this season, especially in defence, are impressive. After 16 appearances, he has a strong tackle efficiency of almost 97%.
Where will he fit in?
The Dragons remain in contract talks with fourteen of their players who’s deals expire at the end of the season.
Four of those are back row options, as Elliot Whitehead, Bayley Sironen, Tariq Sims and Paul Seguier have all yet to sign new terms with the club.
Sironen and Seguier would be the priority, since they are younger, but there has been no talk of any of them agreeing a new deal as of yet.
Lipowicz has rarely played a full 80 minutes this season, with many of his performances coming from the bench. However, if an agreement can’t be reached with one, if not two of the out of contract back rowers, Lipowicz could find himself in a starting role for the Perpignan club.
