“We lacked the funds and the strategy to pursue a well-known front rower.”
According to rugby league general manager Darren Mooney, the Cronulla Sharks never intended to sign Addin Fonua-Blake for the 2025 NRL season.
One of the top props in the league, Fonua-Blake, asked the New Zealand Warriors for a release at the end of the 2024 season on compassionate grounds. The Auckland-based team eventually accepted his request, and James Fisher-Harris was signed as his direct replacement.
Fonua-Blake nearly joined his first team, the St George Illawarra Dragons, after returning to Australia. He did, however, ultimately sign with the Sharks, presumably for less money than the Dragons were willing to pay.
Speaking on SEN Radio, Mooney disclosed that Fonua-Blake’s management was the ones who first contacted the club. He also stated that the Shire-based team was able to make a move for Fonua-Blake because of the money that was made available by the releases of Matt Moylan to the Leigh Leopards in the English Super League and Connor Tracey to the Canterbury Bulldogs.
“I suppose we never intended to sign Addin. There was definitely a problem hammering out a release plan with the Warriors since he had a contract with them for a few more years,” Mooney stated on SEN’s The Run Home with Joel and Fletch.
“At that time, I believe we had released Matty Moylan to Leigh and Connor Tracey to the Bulldogs, so we had some salary cap space to work with. To be honest, his manager called to ask if we could accommodate it. We also didn’t have the money or the plan to pursue a marquee front rower.
“After a lot of meetings and number-crunching, we didn’t think we’d be able to enter the stadium, but we decided to give it a shot anyway, meet him, and see if he liked the kind of environment he would be entering, and ultimately, I suppose We managed to get him.
“It was a credit to everyone who was involved, it was a credit to Addin wanting to be part of our organisation, and we can’t wait to get him on board.”
With five-eighth Braydon Trindall’s breakout season now behind them, it has been widely believed that the Sharks were a powerful forward pack leader just short of being able to contend for the premiership. It appears that the Shire-based team is finally coming together.
In 2024, Craig Fitzgibbon’s team, who also has a number of young forwards in their system, ended up with a preliminary final exit.
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