The Cronulla Sharks have confirmed all of Mawene Hiroti, Niwhai Puru, Billy Burns, Jayden Berrell and Chris Vea'ila have re-signed for the 2025 season.
The players have all extended by just a single season, putting them straight back on the open market for 2026 from November 1.
The five predominantly featured for the Newtown Jets throughout the 2024 season, with the Sharks trumping the five re-signings as strong depth signings, the club staying stable ahead of their push to again feature among the top teams this coming campaign.
Of the five players, maybe the most exciting is Vea'ila, a 21-year-old centre who, while yet to make his NRL debut, has played 32 NSW Cup games for the Jets, with 21 of them coming during 2024. He scored ten tries, added four try assists and ran for almost 100 metres per game.
He also scored a try in the grand final against the North Sydney Bears, and while he is trapped behind the likes of Jesse Ramien and Kayal Iro for a first-grade spot, his time could come in 2022 if the Sharks run into issues.
Hiroti, another outside back, has been with the Sharks for a number of years now. Able to play at centre or on the wing, he has often featured amongst Cronulla's reserves when teams are named on a Tuesday, and had four first grade games this year while captaining the Jets.
Puru has at times struggled to live up to his enormous potential since leaving the Penrith Panthers system, but led the Jets to their NSW Cup premiership this season from the halves.
Burns is an experienced campaigner at centre and in the second-row, having previously played for the St George Illawarra Dragons and Penrith Panthers, while Berrell made his first grade debut this season at dummy half after spending most of his career in the Queensland Cup.
Both Vea'ila and Puru were still eligible for the under-21 Jersey Flegg competition this year.