The Perth Bears are just days away from being able to officially talk to players, negotiate with them, and ultimately, begin to build their first squad ahead of entry into the NRL in 2027.

Mal Meninga and recruitment boss Dane Campbell have an enormous task ahead of them.

You only have to wind the clock back a handful of years to remember when the NRL's 17th side, the Dolphins, went through the same process, chasing plenty of targets, and eventually landing a squad that was well short of their aims for their inaugural season.

The Bears now enter the NRL with the added disadvantage of having to travel across the country on a regular basis, and for any players lining up for the Western Australian outfit to have to relocate.

But there are still learnings from the Dolphins.

From signing experience, to trying to lock up a marquee early, the Dolphins may be able to give us a window into the timeline the Bears are aiming for ahead of their inaugural season.

How fast can they start?

The Bears can start formally tabling offers to players from November 1, but that certainly doesn't mean signings are expected at the click of the fingers.

The ten-day cooling off period for players changing clubs means that, in the best-case scenario, the NRL's newest outfit are unlikely to be able to announce anyone before mid-November.

The Dolphins, for reference, were able to confirm their first player signing on November 26, poaching Felise Kaufusi from the Melbourne Storm.

A dribbling of signings continued through December of 2021, with Ray Stone signing on December 7, trio Harrison Graham, Michael Roberts and Valynce Te Whare all being confirmed on December 16, and Jamayne Isaako taking the list to six by Christmas, being announced on December 22.

The Dolphins have indicated they want ten by Christmas though in what would be an aggressive start to life as a new NRL club.

“We are mindful we don't have to have a roster of 30 done by Christmas time this year … If we've got 10 players signed by Christmas, we've done incredibly well. The rest can be built out by next year," Campbell recently said per The Sydney Morning Herald.

“In my brain, that's possible.”

FROM THE VAULT: Dolphins 2023 signing tracker

What happens after Christmas?

January and February is typically a quiet time for player signings.

Players are into the swing of pre-season, and clubs are sitting back, waiting to see if more players will become available once the season starts as some look to break contracts or find a fresh start owing to a lack of opportunities or a multitude of other reasons.

If the Bears do manage ten signings by Christmas, you may not see a single player signed in those months leading up to the season.

The Dolphins managed to add Jesse Bromwich on January 21, Mark Nicholls on January 24, both Jesse and Kenneath Bromwich on February 3, and Isaiya Katoa — now one of the club's biggest stars — on February 18.

The Bears recruitment strategy may well be determined by the availability of Gold Coast Titans captain Tino Fa'asuamaleaui.

It has been mooted that he could be offered $1.5 million to make the switch west, but he has also acknowledged he is going to give the Titans time to turn things around.

The Bears need to keep signing players in the background, but there is certainly no rush to build an entire squad given the salary cap space Fa'asuamaleaui would take if he made the switch west.

In season signings

Once the season starts, signings become far more regular as players fine and drop form, suffer injuries, or go to new levels. Values change rapidly, as seen by multiple players throughout 2025.

While the Bears have the added challenge of travel across the country and players relocating - so we actually expect they may be ahead of the Dolphins signing wise - they will look to the experience of the Dolphins, who signed one player (Tom Gilbert) in April, and then went flat out in May and June, signing seven players during May and another four in June.

Three players were signed in July, and one in August, with the final components of the squad added in September and October.

The Bears will be keen to ensure that, like the Dolphins, they have the bulk of their squad locked up by the end of June given the lack of players available on the market by that stage in the season as more and more confirm their futures.