Penitani back to where she wants to be

NSW winger Tiana Penitani has opened up on the challenges of trying to negotiate a release from the final year of her contract at Parramatta to join new NRLW club Cronulla for the 2023 season.  

Penitani created history last season by becoming the first player to sign a multi-year deal with an NRLW club after agreeing to a two-year extension that included the upcoming season in blue and gold.

However, the 27-year-old's agreement was sorted with the Eels prior to the NRL confirming an additional four teams would join the NRLW in 2023, including the Sharks, where Penitani has played most of her footy at a state club level. 

Former Roosters prop Sarah Togatuki was another who was signed by the Tricolours for an additional season last year but was given her blessing to depart for Wests Tigers despite 12 months left on her contract.

Penitani, however, wasn’t offered the same at the Eels – which they were well-within their right given she had signed a legally binding contract – leaving the former Jillaroos representative to try and negotiate a release in recent months.

Both parties eventually came to a mutual agreement on Wednesday – the final day of the contracting window – with Penitani released by the Eels on compassionate grounds.

Cronulla quickly announced her signature while Pentani was in NSW Sky Blues camp on Thursday afternoon.

“It was a tricky situation because I didn’t want to disappoint anyone,” Penitani told NRL.com.

“At the end of the day people are going to be disappointed whether it’s the club or fans.

“It’s a decision based on putting myself first and that’s all I’ve done. I’m getting on now in age and am not a spring chicken anymore where I can spread myself thin.

“There’s a lot of sacrifice going on at home. My mum is away for most of the year with work at the moment and I inherit a lot of what’s going on at home.

“I’ve got a 16-year-old sister who plays rep soccer so I’m playing mum at home and it was going to be really hard for me to give 110 percent for a club that I commute to for an hour and a half away and then an hour home each session.

“It took a lot of deliberation between me and my husband before I pushed [for a release].

“Parramatta were really gracious in the process but obviously they have to cover every base as well and talk as a club what they do.

“That took time but we knew we had the window there so it played to that.”

Penitani’s situation is unlikely to be the last in the women’s space with multi-year contracts given to most players across the NRLW for 2023 and beyond in a history-making first for the competition. 

While mid-season and early releases in the NRL have been around for decades, the women’s game remains in its infancy with Penitani's case now a clear example of clubs wanting players to honour contracts when they are signed. 

“It’s navigating in a really new space for the women’s game,” she said.

“It’s one of the first times ever for the women that a female athlete in this game and a club has been in this position.

“I was nervous with how late it got but I trusted that everything would be alright in the end.

“For anyone that’s followed my career at the beginning the Sharks were the first team I played for when I returned to rugby league after being kicked out of the boys’ team as a 10-year-old.

“It’s bittersweet I’ve left a club that has been important for my career in the Eels but in saying that I’m coming home. That’s the bottom line and I’m really excited to represent Cronulla.”

Penitani will have to wait until Round 9 of the NRLW to take on her former club when the Sharks and Eels meet at GIO Stadium on September 17. 

In the meantime, her immediate focus is lining up for her fifth Origin appearance for the Sky Blues on Thursday night at CommBank Stadium.