Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V'Landys has confirmed Zac Lomax will be welcomed back into the game if the courts clear his release from the Parramatta Eels.
It comes as a judge warned the case between Lomax and the Eels may not be resolved in the allocated two days for the hearing, and could drag into the start of the NRL season.
Lomax, who was released by the Eels at the end of 2025 to seek opportunities away from the NRL - namely, Saudi Arabian-backed competition R360 - has since seen the deal fall over with the competition postponed until 2028.
It led to Lomax becoming involved in talks with the Melbourne Storm, however, the Eels wrote a clause into his deal which stops him from playing for a rival club until at least the end of 2028.
Lomax believes that is a restriction of trade and not enforceable, leading to the Eels taking legal action against their former winger, who is being backed by the Storm.
The Eels would reportedly be prepared to release Lomax from the terms if a suitable player swap can be arranged, or compensation provided.
There is still some hope a resolution will be reached before the court showdown begins on Thursday, but per News Corp, a decision may not be reached within the two-day window allocated.
If that happens, it will underpin the opening game of the season in Australia - a few days after the Las Vegas double–header - when the Eels and Storm face off on Thursday, March 5.
Lomax, at the very least, has already cleared the hurdle of the ARLC's ten-year ban which was threatened to any and all players who either signed with, or entered talks with, a non-sanctioned sporting organisation like R360.
V'Landys, who fiercely defended the rule when it was first announced, has now softened his tone.
“Like I said, our job is to have the best players in the game,” he told the publication.
“We're going to allow the court process to take its course, and we'll make decisions after that.
“But no, he won't get a 10-year ban.
“We haven't seen what's coming out of the courts yet, so just wait.
“But I believe he signed everything before we made any announcement (on the R360 ban), so he didn't take it forward after that.
“When we introduced the 10-year bans, we said we would look at everything on its merit. And if there were unforeseen circumstances the ban wouldn't apply.
“At this stage, we haven't seen any evidence to suggest that he signed anything (with R360) after we announced the ban."
The Eels have expressed their concern to V'Landys and the ARLC over the issue, with other players sure to be watching closely around just how stable NRL contracts and releases are.
Negotiations will continue between the two parties between now and Thursday.
