There are few teams with as many decisions to make as the Cronulla Sharks heading into the 2026 NRL recruitment period.
Despite making the preliminary finals in 2024, there is a real feeling the Sharks are a few very good players short of being able to start pushing for the premiership.
Granted, the 2024 season was Melbourne and Penrith followed by daylight to everybody else, but Cronulla has the nucleus of a squad that can challenge the top guns if only they could add some more key parts.
2026 shapes as the time they will be really able to do that, although it'll be quite intriguing to see how they improve with Addin Fonua-Blake added to the forward pack following his release from the New Zealand Warriors.
Whether he is enough to flip the script remains to be seen, but they will likely need more to continue their push upwards into 2026.
We will run the rule over all 17 clubs on Zero Tackle in the lead-up to November 1 to determine who their top targets are. Today, the Sharks.
Current 2026 Cronulla Sharks squad
Blayke Brailey, Jesse Colquhoun, Addin Fonua-Blake, Michael Gabrael, Braden Hamlin-Uele, Nicho Hynes, Kayal Iro, Sione Katoa, Jesse Ramien, Toby Rudolf, Siosifa Talakai
Off-contract at end of 2025
Daniel Atkinson, Kade Dykes, Tuku Hau Tapuha, Thomas Hazelton, Oregon Kaufusi, William Kennedy, Cameron McInnes, Ronaldo Mulitalo, Briton Nikora, Sam Stonestreet, Braydon Trindall, Teig Wilton
Current best 17 for 2026
1. No player signed
2. Sione Katoa
3. Jesse Ramien
4. Kayal Iro
5. Michael Gabrael
6. No player signed
7. Nicho Hynes
8. Addin Fonua-Blake
9. Blayke Brailey
10. Braden Hamlin-Uele
11. No player signed
12. Siosifa Talakai
13. Toby Rudolf
Interchange
14. Jesse Colquhoun
15. No player signed
16. No player signed
17. No player signed
2026 really could make or break on the recruitment front for the Sharks.
They only have 11 players signed as it stands, and while that much squad transformation in a single go is never a fantastic idea, it could be that they have a heavy switch heading into 2026.
It's fair to say they will want to re-sign some of their younger talent - Thomas Hazelton, Kade Dykes and Sam Stonestreet leading the charge, but there will also be plenty of interest in them, as well as the likes of Braydon Trindall and Briton Nikora.
There are also questions like whether to re-sign Daniel Atkinson and, more importantly, fullback William Kennedy.
Is Kennedy a premiership-winning fullback? He could be a player Cronulla sit on until they understand whether they can sign a star from another club.
While we are talking about Kennedy, we might as well start with who on the open market could potentially replace him.
Make no mistake: Nicoll-Klokstad is not the absolute best fullback available. James Tedesco and Ryan Papenhuyzen take that mantle.
But it's also about being realistic.
Cronulla will undoubtedly be out-muscled if they try to go for either player, given the enormous cash already tied up in Nicho Hynes and Addin Fonua-Blake.
So Nicoll-Klokstad would make sense. He runs the ball hard, knows how to lay on a try assist, and would seem an upgrade on Kennedy.
Speaking of players who can play at fullback, Tyran Wishart wouldn't be a bad shout either from a Cronulla point of view.
For a utility who is looking for a starting role, there is no guarantee he will leave Melbourne at the end of 2025, given they have a club option locked in for him.
But that doesn't mean the youngster won't kick up a stink if they take it, given he has been public in his desire to hold a starting spot somewhere in the NRL.
The halves seem more likely, but he didn't look out of place at fullback either, and Cronulla could do a lot worse than make a play for his utility value, particularly given they are yet to lock up five-eighth Braydon Trindall, who, after his excellent form to finish 2024, has indicated he will hit the open market.
Pryce may be yet to break through as a permanent NRL player after his move from the English Super League, but there is little doubt he will do just that at some point.
A five-eighth and fullback, he slots right into what Cronulla need - or potentially need - but would also be a great back-up option should they wind up retaining both Trindall and Kennedy.
A supreme talent with an excellent running game, he would be a real danger feeding off the Sharks' forward pack and their offloads as well.
The other benefit is that he would come cheap, which is something the Sharks are going to have to be ever mindful of, given their salary cap.
The Sharks need more depth at second-row.
Whether they can afford a player like Shaun Lane - who does have a mutual option with Parramatta for 2026 - remains to be seen and could well hinge on whether they manage to re-sign their off-contract second-row duo of Teig Wilton and Briton Nikora.
But even if they do, finding the money for Lane could prove important. If either Wilton or Nikora cop an injury, the Sharks cupboard is a little bare right now in terms of backup players on the edge.
Lane, an excellent ball runner thanks to his height and leg power, would be a serious weapon playing on the outside of Nicho Hynes.
Utility-type players seem to be the order of the day for the Sharks, and Kurt Mann is another who has improved dramatically during his time at the Knights and Bulldogs in recent seasons.
Now predominantly a lock forward, Mann still has the ability to slot in around the backline and could head to a club like Cronulla as an excellent bench player who will start his fair share of games.
What's more, he fits into Cronulla's forward pack nicely. Where there is currently plenty of size, he would add agility and change the way they play through the middle third of the field when he is on the park.
Another player who could come cheap, which, again, is a large consideration for the men from the Shire.