The 2025 NRL season is heading into its final stretch, and for some coaches, the pressure has reached boiling point.
Finals hopes are fading, club boards are restless, and fan patience is wearing thin. With speculation swirling and a handful of jobs expected to be vacant by year's end, quite a few coaches are feeling the heat.
Others, however, are riding high, knowing they'll be NRL coaches for the foreseeable future.
As the countdown to the off-season begins, here's a look at which coaches are safe in their current roles, and who might not survive to see Round 1 in 2026.
3. Pressure Building
Some NRL coaches may be facing the hot seat in 2026.
With a list of young NRL assistants salivating at the prospect of a head coaching job, these coaches will need to secure wins fast, if they want to keep their seat at the table.
Anthony Seibold
Despite a woeful coaching performance at the Broncos in the latest 2010s, the Manly Sea Eagles viewed Anthony Seibold as the man to take the club to the next level.
With Origin stars across the board, Seibold has had plenty to work with.
Not much work has been done, however, with the side set to miss their second finals in three years under Seibold.
Not much hope remains for Seibold's job in 2026, and with rumours floating around about potential coaching replacements, he will need to have his side firing next season if he wants to keep his job.
Craig Fitzgibbon
The Cronulla Sharks' first season with Craig Fitzgibbon was straight out of a fairytale. Unfortunately for the Shire faithful, reality soon hit once finals did.
While having his side consistently featured in the top eight since arriving in Cronulla has been a major win for the young coach, the Sharks have struggled to make a splash come finals time.
His side's inconsistency has become their Achilles heel, and the inexperienced Fitzgibbon has been unable to find the root of the issue.
Fitzgibbon will need to find some finals success as soon as possible, or we may be seeing a new man donning the coaches whistle in 12 months.
Des Hasler
If you were to ask us a few weeks ago whether Des Hasler would be coaching the Gold Coast Titans in 2026, you would receive a definitive “no.”
However, with reports that the Titans are considering giving the veteran coach one more year to turn things around, and Hasler declaring his hopes to remain in Gold Coast in 2026, we may not see him pack his bags just yet.
Hasler will need to up the ante in 2026, though. With stars like Jayden Campbell, Keano Kini and Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, another bottom four finish is out of question.
If he does fail again, he will be headed straight for retirement.
