The Wests Tigers have moved to fend off interest from the Perth Bears after tabling young gun Sione Fainu a three-year, $1.2 million extension to stay at the club. The news comes amid reports 173-game veteran and former Origin star Jack Bird may have played his final game in the NRL after falling out of favour at Benji Marshall’s Tigers and being left without a new team.

The Tigers’ board handed Marshall an extension last year that will see him remain head coach until at least the end of 2030. And one of his first pieces of business ahead of the new season is centred around retaining emerging forward Fainu, amid interest from Mal Meninga’s Bears.

The 24-year-old is off-contract with the Tigers at the end of 2026 and has emerged as a target for the NRL’s newest team. But Marshall is keen to keep hold of the boom forward, who played all 24 games for the side in a breakout 2025 season, having come through a development deal the year before. News Corp reports that the Tigers have tabled Fainu a new deal worth $400,000 per season to reflect his growing importance.

Fainu is one of three brothers on the Tigers’ books, alongside fellow forward Samuela and exciting half Latu – who were all brought across from Manly. And the Tigers are desperate to lock down the brothers long-term, with many viewing them as the future of the joint-venture outfit.

Sione spoke of their desire to win a premiership with the Tigers after the brothers made club history last year by all scoring a try in the round 18 victory over the Roosters. “We want to give back to the club and play finals footy for the Tigers,” he said at the time. “We want to give back to Benji for what he has done for us.”

Unwanted Tiger Jack Bird’s NRL career hangs in the balance

While Fainu’s extension is another important piece of the puzzle for Marshall, the Tigers coach has deemed former Origin star Bird surplus to requirements. And after proposed switches to Manly and the English Super League fell through, there is a chance the veteran has played his last game in the NRL.

Bird did not feature in the final six games of the 2025 season for the Tigers, before being told he was free to leave the club. A swap deal with the Sea Eagles fell over late last year that would have seen veteran Manly front-rower Nathan Brown move in the opposite direction.

The 30-year-old was also in discussions to join the London Broncos – recently purchased by NRL legend Darren Lockyer and coached by former Souths mentor Jason Demetriou. But the London side failed to earn promotion to the English Super League and were hampered by salary constraints in the Championship division.

It leaves Bird without a club for 2026 and with most other NRL rosters all but filled, his first-grade career in Australia hangs in the balance. Bird is reportedly still exploring opportunities in the English Super League and a number of clubs are said to be interested in signing him.