The Gold Coast's female Future Titans will have a star-studded line-up on the sidelines as they face the Newcastle Knights in their annual trial match to be played at Coffs Harbour this Saturday.
With both Under 17s and 19s teams up against the Novocastrians for the second-year running, Titans academy manager Tim McIntyre is full of excitement for the two trials, which saw four players earn top 24 contracts after strong showings - including grand final trio Sienna Lofipo, Destiny Mino-Sinapati and Rilee Jorgensen after dominating in 2023.
See below for the staff involved in helping develop the Future Titans Female Academy in 2024:
Under 17s
Head coach - Veronica White
Veronica White is a female rugby league legend as the first woman to become a life member of the Australian Women's Rugby League. She successfully represented both Queensland and Australia as a player before undertaking a successful coaching pathway, which has included mentoring at club, school and state level, coaching the Queensland Schoolgirls team in 2022.
Now at Palm Beach Currumbin spearheading their female rugby league program, White is now in her second year as head coach of Future Titans Under 17s after a successful first season in 2023.
Assistant coach - Anthony Swain
Anthony 'Swainy' Swain has grown up and been involved in rugby league all his life, firstly as a player and now coach. Heavily involved with the Tweed Seagulls, Swainy began his coaching journey in 2008 with juniors, before progressing to most recently the club's Hastings Deering Colts side.
With a huge emphasis on developing young people with energy and cheerfulness, 2024 is Swainy's first season part of the Future Titans' coaching staff.
Assistant coach - Spencer Taplin
Spencer began his coaching career as an assistant and trainer with the New Zealand Warriors Under 20s before moving to Australia in 2021 to take on a role with the Burleigh Bears' BMD Premiership team.
Taplin joined cross-town rivals Tweed in 2022 to be the Seagulls' BMD Premiership coach, before returning to Burleigh in 2023 to lead the Bears' Harvey Norman U19s campaign - finishing top of their pool.
2024 is his second season working with the Under 17s after joining the program in 2023.
Under 19s
Head coach - Paul Nieuwenhuyzen
Nieuwenhuyzen is an esteemed rugby league mentor with an impressive resumé, well versed in coaching both male and female athletes since 2005.
After coaching the Brisbane Tigers' Harvey Norman Under 19s last year, Nieuwenhuyzen will move into the Brisbane Tigers' BMD Premiership head coach role in season 2024. Beyond his duties at the Tigers, he has also held the role of assistant coach for the Queensland Under 19s at the National Women's Championships for the past three seasons.
Part of the Titans' Under 13/14 Development program in 2019, Nieuwenhuyzen progressed to the club's female academy in 2022 as Tim McIntyre's assistant, before undertaking the top job for the most recent season.
Assistant coach - Bo De La Cruz
A talented athlete in her own right, Bo De La Cruz was born in Darwin but now calls Queensland home and is working as a Deadly Choices ambassador to help promote healthy lifestyle choices to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Growing into an exceptional role model for aspiring young athletes, De La Cruz is a champion touch, rugby union and league player and has been a vital cog in the Australia Women’s Open Touch team since 2001, as well as shining for Australia at the inaugural Rugby Sevens World Cup in Dubai, and Australian Rugby Union Wallaroos World Cup Squad in 2010.
Post her on-field achievements, she has been involved in a number of coaching roles with the First Nations Australian Rugby 7’s and Brisbane Broncos and Indigenous All Stars NRLW programs, before joining the Future Titans Under 19s in 2024.
Assistant coach - Shane Hammond
Shane Hammond is a very familiar name in rugby league circles as a leading coach at Marsden State High School since 2015, alongside being the Metropolitan East coach for both Under 15 and 18 girls in previous years.
A senior mentor in the female rugby league space, Hammond was also the Queensland Schoolgirls manager in 2022 working alongside Veronica White, and this season is his second year with the Future Titans Academy after joining the expanded program at the end of 2022.
