Former Gold Coast Titans standout Kieran Foran has expressed his ambition to eventually take on the role of head coach at an NRL club.

Foran is set to hang up his boots following this year’s Pacific Championships, where he will lead New Zealand in their Pacific Cup matchup against Tonga on Sunday. The Kiwis are gearing up for a potential showdown with Samoa in the final.

Initially, many believed the 35-year-old would remain with the Titans in a coaching role. However, Foran recently surprised the NRL community by announcing his return to Manly, where he launched his professional career.

“It’s really special,” Foran, this year’s recipient of the Ken Stephen Medal, shared with The Daily Telegraph.

“I spent the majority of my career at Manly, playing nearly 200 games and winning a premiership there,” he reflected.

“I’ve maintained close and meaningful ties with the club for many years. I’m incredibly grateful for the chance to return and embark on the next chapter of my life, which is my journey into coaching.”

Kieran Foran (pictured with partner Karina) has opened up on why he chose to rejoin the Manly Sea Eagles 

The veteran Kiwi halfback (right) is set to hang up the boots following the conclusion of this year’s Pacific Championship

Across two stints at the club, Foran has made 196 appearances for the Sea Eagles across two spells at the club, notably winning a premiership with the side in 2011.

But after a stellar career on the footy pitch, the 300-gamer is now plotting out his future coaching career, but insists he is not in a hurry to rise to the top, adding he has a lot to learn first.

‘I’ve certainly got aspirations to coach,’ Foran said.

‘What I will say is I’m not in any rush to become a head coach. I want to do a proper apprenticeship and I feel it’s a wonderful opportunity to go and do that back at Manly under Anthony.

‘He’s the sort of guy and coach I probably haven’t had throughout my career. I think I’ll be able to learn and grow a hell of a lot from him.

‘To be able to do it back at Manly with familiar people is a wonderful opportunity.’

Foran’s story is an inspiring one with the footy player having overcome several serious injuries during his career and a breakdown in a former relationship. It was a dark time in his life, with the former Manly and Parramatta star excessively drinking and gambling as a coping mechanism, before, as he puts it, going down a ‘slippery slope’.

He struggled with his mental health and contemplated taking his own life.

The halfback made 196 appearances for the Sea Eagles across two spells at the footy club

He recently opened up on how he suffered serious mental health issues and had considered taking his own life. He added that his partner Karina helped him through that dark period

Obsessed with rugby league, Foran admitted that not being on the pitch was difficult, adding that during his glittering career he underwent a whopping 17 surgeries.

But it was his new partner Karina who helped him.

‘Karina has been the steady soul I needed. She met me at a dark time in my life, and I was warts-and-all about where I wanted to be [in terms of personal growth],’ he told Daily Mail in September.

Foran has gone on to do some inspiring work, becoming a mental health awareness advocate, setting up a foundation called Logan’s Legacy, a charity which was named after his wife Karina’s late son who died by suicide in 2023. The foundation aims to offer mental health prevention and intervention support to those who need it.

Foran had played his junior rugby for Auckland before his family moved to Australia. His dad is interestingly Greg Foran, the former CEO of Walmart and the chief executive of Air New Zealand. Kieran would later go on to represent the Australia Schoolboys in 2007.

He’d also play for the North Sydney Bears before putting pen to paper on a deal to join the Sea Eagles

The Auckland-born halfback also reflected on what his homecoming means, Foran said: ‘People always see me as a Manly player.

‘But since coming to the Gold Coast I’ve also been viewed as a Titans player and that’s what made the decision really hard.

Foran has gone on to do some inspiring work, becoming a mental health awareness advocate, setting up a foundation called Logan’s Legacy, a charity which was named after his wife Karina’s late son who died by suicide in 2023

Foran is now hoping to one day become a head coach, but adds that he is not in a rush, adding that he has plenty to learn 

‘At the end of the day, you’ve got to put family first and do what feels right in your heart.

‘When the opportunity arose and Anthony reached out, it just ticked all the boxes. It felt like a really good fit.’

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