"They will match Titans": Bears make move to poach Tino

The Perth Bears have made an official approach to Tino Fa’asuamaleaui’s management and the lure of working with Mal Meninga could prove too strong to keep him a Titan.

Despite having a 10-year deal with the Titans, which runs through until 2033, the star has a get-out clause for the 2027 season and a move out West to become the Bears marquee signing looks almost certain.

Last week Fa’asuamaleaui declared he would enter the open market on November 1 and it is widely expected that Meninga and the Bears will face competition from the Dragons and Storm.

Whatever the future holds, talks will be delayed until the prop returns from the Kangaroos Ashes tour in England.

“The Bears have expressed interest, yes,” Fa’asuamaleaui’s manager Simon Mammino told News Corp. “From November 1, we will start having proper negotiations and talk about offers.

“I spoke to Mal and he expressed interest and wanted to see if we are keen to talk at November 1.

“I said we will get to it once the Kangaroo tour is over, then I will sit down with Tino and work out which direction we go.

“Perth’s interest is genuine and the money will be there, I’m sure they will match the Titans’ offer.

“Mal will have significant pull with Tino given their history.”

When Fa’asuamaleaui announced his intention to enter the open market, it suggested it was through gritted teeth.

Not wanting to leave the Titans he did deliver some truth bombs for the club about their performance in recent years.

"Obviously I really want to be at the Titans and I think I've said this before, I want to see improvement there and want to start winning there," he said.

"That's what I want to see."

As for other clubs interested in his signature, Storm CEO Justin Rodski told SEN they would be exploring all big name options after a number stars exited the club.

"I couldn't answer that right now other than to say we'll explore every single option to strengthen our squad and our list," he said.

"Whether or not it's someone like Tino - I reckon Tino might come with a hefty price tag on him - we'd love to have him at our club again but we'll work through all that, we'll explore every option.

"This is a competitive market, the landscape's only going to get more difficult with expansion teams coming in, obviously Perth Bears can start to sign players from November 1 so it's going to be a really interesting period.

"We'll make sure we're in there and discussing every single player that can add value to our list and club. Clearly Tino would be a wonderful asset to any club and we'd love to explore that, we will.

"But clearly that's going to be a challenge for us with our squad and our salary cap but we'll have a look at it and see where it lands."