A day after Mal Meninga was confirmed as the head coach of the Perth Bears, two Gold Coast Titans forwards have emerged as potential options to be the marquee star of the NRL's newest expansion team.
Set to finalise their coaching staff in the coming months, multiple players are set to be linked with the Bears over the next six months as they are able to speak and negotiate with players who are off-contract at the end of the 2026 NRL season from November 1.
While there is still plenty of time to decide on who the Bears will build their roster around, they will likely recruit at least one or two top-tier players so they can contend for the finals straight away, just like The Dolphins have done.
According toย News Corp, Gold Coast Titans duo David Fifita and Tino Fa'asuamaleaui have both emerged as potential options the Bears could go after due to their ties with Mal Meninga (who previously worked as a consultant for the Titans).
However, Simon Mammino, the agent of Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, declared that while the forward could opt out of his contract due to specific clauses,ย he is committed to remaining on the Gold Coast.
โTino is happy and committed to the Titans but we do have a clause in place to consider all options,โย Mammino told the publication.
โAt the time he entered into the contract, there was no indication of when expansion teams would enter the NRL.
โThe clause was more about reviewing where he was at after three more years at the Titans.
โAt this point his sole focus is with the Titans and turning their season around. We will sit down at season's end to discuss his future.
โI would be surprised if he decided to leave the Titans even if he considered signing with a new franchise.โ
Another option that has emerged as a target for the Perth Bears is David Fifita, who runs off-contract at the end of 2026, and his tenure at the Titans is clouded in uncertainty after being axed to the QLD Cup recently.
One of the highest-paid players in theย NRLย with an annual salary of around $1 million, Fifita has had glimpses of brilliance signing moving to the Gold Coast but hasn't looked like the same player he was during his time at Red Hill with theย Brisbane Broncos.
This has resulted in the club continually missing out on making theย NRLย Finals.
Having not played in first-grade since Round 8,ย The Courier-Mailย is reporting that the star forward was granted medical clearance to return to the field, but he disagreed with the club's medical advice ruling out a return to the field.
The objection from Fifita comes after he was previously axed to theย QLD Cupย by coachย Des Haslerย and spent time with the Ipswich Jets.
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Less than 12 months after backflipping on a four-year deal worth $850,000 to join theย Sydney Roosters, theย Wests Tigers have also emerged as a potential home for the barnstorming forward.
"They were definitely looking at finding a back-rower to help them,"ย The Sydney Morning Herald's Michael Chammasย said on theย Wests Tigers Lifeย podcast.
"There were some conversations internally aboutย David Fifitaย and whether they should go there, butย Kai Pearce-Paulย is definitely looking likely at this stage."
