Sharks Hunting A Title in 2025
Last season’s NRLW runners up are looking to go one better this season.
“For the girls that have been here for the last two seasons and were part of that Grand Final team last year, I can just see the look in their eyes and the fire in their belly, the way they turn up to training.“
Those were the words of Cronulla Sharks NRLW captain Tiana Penitani Gray at Wednesday night’s team season launch, which should encourage the club’s fans, and be a warning to other teams.
In just their second season in the NRLW, the Cronulla Sharks made it all the way to last year’s Grand Final at Sydney’s Olympic stadium on the back of a 14-0 shutout away win over the star studded Brisbane Broncos. A week later, after being shellshocked in the first half of the decider where they found themselves trailing 24-0, the team showed their resilience and character to get within four points in the final minute, and had one last crack at snatching what would’ve been a miraculous win.
It wasn’t to be on that occasion, but the Sharks will now enter the new season with an enormous amount of self belief. That said, this 2025 Sharks squad has a different look about it, as Penitani Gray, the reigning Dally M Captain of the Year, told HER WAY:
“We haven’t really reflected too much on last year’s Grand Final - that’s because we’ve got a lot of new great faces within our squad, so it’s a very different dynamic.”
Among those new faces is New Zealand Rugby Sevens star Tyla King. The 30 year old is now a two time Olympic gold medalist, not to mention one of the greatest players in Sevens history. Having brought her Sevens career to an end last year, King returns to the NRLW in 2025, having previously played for St George-Illawarra Dragons in 2023, and was part of the New Zealand side in the last two Pacific Championship tournaments (pictured below).
HER WAY asked Tyla what drew her to joining the Sharks.
“Looking from the outside, they looked like one of those teams that was super gritty and gave it their all every single day and they really worked for each other.
This past seven or eight weeks of pre-season I’ve learnt so much about myself and the game.”
On top of two Olympic gold medals, Tyla also has a silver medal, Commonwealth gold, plus several team and personal achievements in World Sevens. For someone who has achieved so much in her sporting career, I asked how she continues to find ways to motivate and challenge herself as an athlete:
“Switching to league two years ago was a definitely a new challenge. I was out of my comfort zone, had never played the sport before. I wanted to go back to that person that was the learner, and I am. There’s still stuff I learn every single day at training. The girls, the environment, the culture that they’ve been able to create these past two years - I’m just glad that I’ve been able to contribute to that this year.”
The Sharks lost a few significant contributors in the off-season, including a quartet who have departed to be part of the inaugural Bulldogs squad - Tayla Preston, Holli Wheeler, Tegan Dymock and Andie Robinson. The departure of Wheeler and Dymock creates opportunities in the forward pack, and one new signing who will be hoping to fill their shoes is young gun Jacinta Carter. Originally from Queensland, the former Under 19 representative has spent the past two seasons at Newcastle, including the premiership year of 2023. With a couple of State of Origin props to learn from in the form of her roommate Ellie Johnston and new mum Caitlin Johnston-Green, ‘Jacy’ explained why she made the move to Cronulla.
“I was just ready to grow, I wanted to take a big step and move to Sydney where I’ve never lived before.”
The young prop forward has some fairly simple plans for 2025.
“My goal for the season is to just be in the team every week really. I just want to be really really consistent, I want to be a dominant ‘middle’, pretty simple and straight forward.”
Skipper Penitani Gray found herself playing in several positions in 2024 for both the Sharks and in representative games - she stepped in as fullback during round one when young star Jada Taylor did her ACL, and then played five eighth for the Jillaroos during the Pacific Championships, which she also did in this year’s State of Origin series. Despite those successful experiences, the captain will return to her favoured centre position this year:
“I do love playing in the centres, especially the way we play at the Sharks. We’ve got so many talented halves within our squad - I think the way we play, it’s a little bit more of a traditional style of football, and I think that really suits the players we have that we’ve recruited.”
As well as King, the Sharks have plenty of options in the halves, including Emma Verran (née Tonegato), QLD Origin player Georgia Hannaway and Gold Coast recruit Chantay Kiria-Ratu.
Kiria-Ratu missed the entire 2024 season with an ACL injury after playing with the Titans in their 2023 Grand Final season. Chantay’s form during that finals run, while still a teenager, kept NSW and Jillaroos representative Taliah Fuimaono out of the starting side. The young gun, who is very tall for a half, told HER WAY she looks back at her time out of the game last year as a blessing:
“Mentally I’ve become stronger. It was definitely a challenge through the dark times of having to do the same thing every day rehab - the same running, the same gym. But yeah, I’ve definitely become stronger physically and mentally.”
Another young star who is returning after an ACL injury is Jada Taylor. The fullback has had a bad runs with injury over the past two seasons. In fact, since her NRLW debut in 2022, Jada has only played nine games. In round one last season, before leaving the field with that ACL injury, she showed that her explosive speed and ability to backup in attack is a huge weapon as she scored a try and dominated the game.
Taylor is eyeing a return in round one, but given her recent run of injuries, needs to satisfy the coaching and conditioning staff before she’s ready to take the field again:
“I can’t wait to graduate out of that rehab. I’m hoping to do it early in the year, but also taking my time with it. We know the comeback rate can sometimes see another injury, so I’m hoping to avoid that and just get back onto the field and start enjoying my footy again.”
Jada’s enthusiasm for the sport and her teammates is infectious.
“I absolutely love the group we’ve got here, and I couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. I’m just excited to be on the field with them. I love being at training, and I’m a bit of a competitor and I really want to play footy, so I’m excited to get out there and rip in with the girls.”
Penitani Gray (pictured below) has plenty of admiration for the resilient fullback, declaring to HER WAY:
“This year is her year. I can feel it, and I know she’s going to absolutely shine.”
Cronulla head into the season with their inspirational skipper recently extending her contract until the end of 2027. Penitani Gray has worn the sky blue of Cronulla since the team existed only in the NSW Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership, and told HER WAY that remaining with the Sharks was an easy decision:
“It’s home for me now and it has been for many, many years and I love the community. I just really love the club and I love the values of the club. We’re not the fanciest club in terms of resources and high performance centres, but I think it’s more what the jersey means to the Shire.”
The Sharks will host the season opener on Thursday night against Parramatta. It’s a rivalry of sorts, with the likes of Penitani Gray, Johnston, Brooke Anderson and Vanessa Foliaki having played in Grand Finals for both clubs. In round five’s Magic Round in Newcastle, they’ll play 2024 semi final opponent Brisbane, then in round eight Tyla King will battle against her longtime New Zealand Sevens teammate Michaela Blyde when the Sharks travel to New Zealand. The anticipated Grand Final rematch with premiers Sydney Roosters will finish up the regular season in Gosford.
HER WAY will have more NRLW coverage in the lead up to the season kicking off.