The Gold Coast Titans enter 2026 with serious questions to answer.
Des Hasler has departed, Josh Hannay is looking to build a new era, and the Titans are looking for consistent success for the first time in their history as an NRL club.
That is hardly going to be a walk in the park, though. There are still contract discussions happening, selection conundrums that need sorting, and, more importantly, upgrades in talent needed.
Hannay will have his own ideas, though, to begin the retransformation of the squad, and that has to start with consistent selections, faith in his playing group, and the right replacements being found for departing stars.
David Fifita headlines that list, but has been joined by Kieran Foran heading into retirement, Alofiana Khan-Pereira, who has been released, and Reagan Campbell-Gillar,d who has shuffled to England after a single, fairly disappointing, it has to be said, season on the Gold Coast following his move from Parramatta.
Here are the big selection questions to be answered by Josh Hannay heading into 2026.
4. Six spots are still free, so where do the Titans need upgrades?
At the time of writing, the Titans have six spots left on their official 2026 roster.
There could well have been unannounced movement with the promotion of development players, of which five have already been named.
But otherwise, the Titans still have plenty of spots to fill, and it's fairly clear they need reinforcements.
In the backline, Max Feagai, Phillip Sami, Brian Kelly, Jojo Fifita, Jaylan De Groot and Toby Francis are set to fight over the four wing and centre spots.
The addition of Feagai from the Dolphins - which happened late in the 2025 calendar year - is a solid addition, but you could argue they are still a player short there.
The middle third is yet to replace Reagan Campbell-Gillard, and while Klese Haas is likely to move into the starting second-row following David Fifita's off-season release to the South Sydney Rabbitohs, the Titans are still short there.
The skinny of the situation is that additions for 2026 are likely going to be internal, and it could well be another 12 months before the Titans can start to mount a serious charge off the bottom.
What to do with Lachlan Ilias ?
Good question. I don’t know, and I have to say that either Titans have bought him as a depth player (and I think he would come a bit expensive as a Qld Cup player) or the coach has a specific idea for how he can add value.
I suspect the coach is smarter (and more imaginative) than I am, so let’s all hope he has something in mind.