With a new contract and his family joining him in Brisbane, life is going well for Broncos forward Tevita Pangai.

The Tongan international inked a new deal last week committing himself to the Broncos until the end of the 2022 NRL season and the security over his future has allowed him to relocate his parents and brother from Canberra.

“Wayne’s not here so they gave me good money,” Pangai joked about his new deal, referring to ex-Broncos coach Wayne Bennett.

“My mum moved up last week and my dad’s moving up today (Tuesday). Pretty exciting for me.”

The 23-year-old had reportedly been on the radar of multiple clubs but said he was always eager to stay at the Broncos as part of a young and developing team.

“I’d be silly to leave with the team that we’re building here with Seibs (coach Anthony Seibold) in charge,” he said.

“We’ve got Tommy Flegler, Patty Carrigan, Payne Haas, David Fifita – all these young boys … Long term I know I’ll be playing in a strong team.”

The news that Pangai’s mother has moved north will be music to the ears of teammate Matthew Lodge, who himself has signed a new three-year deal with the Broncos.

Lodge is a big fan of Pangai’s mother’s cooking, especially a Tongan dish called Lu where taro leaves are wrapped around meat and baked in coconut milk.

“We always cook it every week for Lodgey because Lodgey loves that,” Pangai said, admitting his mother limits him to just one plate.

“I have one, Lodgey has three. That’s probably why I can play back-row and he can’t.”