The Gold Coast Titans have confirmed the signing of Mawene Hiroti from the Cronulla Sharks for the 2027 NRL season.
Hiroti, who has regularly signed one-year extensions to remain on the Shire in recent seasons, has agreed to a two-year deal to move to the Titans in 2027 and 2028, having been able to negotiate with rival clubs since November 1.
Hiroti passed up the chance to move on from Cronulla for the 2026 season after fielding interest from arch rivals the St George Illawarra Dragons.
The back, who can play centre, wing or fullback, has been predominantly a back-up options at Cronulla with William Kennedy, Ronaldo Mulitalo, Sione Katoa, KL Iro and Jesse Ramien all ahead of him, as well as other options outside the best 17 for Craig Fitzgibbon.
Moving to the Titans presents a potential chance to crack first-grade on a more consistent basis though, with the Gold Coast still having more than half of their squad to fill for next season.
Josh Hannay, who is preparing for his first season in charge of the Parkwood-based outfit and previously worked with Hiroti in his capacity as assistant coach at the Sharks, labelled Hiroti one of the most underrated backs in the NRL.
"Having worked closely with Mawene over the past five years, it's my belief he's one of the most underrated outside backs in the competition," he said.
"He's been stuck behind some of the best outside backs in the competition at Cronulla and hasn't always got regular opportunities in the NRL, but when he has, he's always been one of the best performing players on the field.
"I admire his no nonsense, head-down, work-hard attitude and I can't wait to work with him again in the future. He brings a lot to the table, including a history of being an outstanding goal-kicker.
"He's going to be an asset for our club and fits the mould of the type of character we want to attract to the Titans."
Hiroti will link up with the Titans at the end of the 2026 campaign, with there being no talk about a potential early release.
Cronulla's salary cap is squeezed though, and if they released Hiroti after the start of the campaign, they would not need to replace him in the Top 30 for the ongoing season.
I’m surprised that Hannay didn’t move more quickly to tie him up before Cronulla re-signed for 2026.
It’s not as if he didn’t know Hiroti was off-contract, and he knew the player’s skill-set.
Hiroti has been signed for 2026 for a little while – wasn’t announced by Cronulla until all that recently, but he was certainly locked away before Hasler was axed at the Titans.