NRL: Signing of Friend threatens Heremaia

Nathan Friend is a veteran of 131 games. Photo / Getty Images

It stands to reason that for every big signing an NRL team makes, there's an incumbent player pondering the likely loss of his job.

In this case - the Warriors' snaring of veteran Titans hooker Nathan Friend - the odd man out is probably Aaron Heremaia.

It's a touch bittersweet for Heremaia that news of the impending loss of his starting job - and possibly his place in the squad altogether - comes when the responsibility on his shoulders has never been greater.

With Shaun Berrigan having switched to the centres to help stiffen the brittle edge of defence, Heremaia has landed the starting role on a semi-permanent basis. He's also been tasked with playing big minutes, notching 63 last week against the Roosters and 60 in the victory over the Sharks in Taupo.

Heremaia is remarkably sanguine about his fate. The club has an option on him for next year, but he is aware he might well be trialling for a contract at another club.

"It is just part of the business really isn't it?" Heremaia said. "I'm not the first one and I won't be the last one it is going to happen to. Ivan [Cleary] informed me what was going to happen. It is just part of football.

"It is only round five and we have a long season ahead of us. It we can string together some good performances and I can play well, you never know what may happen."

Heremaia's situation is complicated by the presence of Alehana Mara. The 21-year-old Wellingtonian was impressive in a three-game cameo last season. He has yet to feature in first grade this year, but club officials have indicated he is still rated as the club's hooker of the future.

Mara is not among the club's top 25 contracted players - meaning he is on the second-tier salary cap - and would appear vulnerable to a raid from another club. However the Warriors have an option in their favour on Mara for next season, so believe time is on their side in terms of his retention.

The most likely scenario would see the club retaining Mara as an understudy to Friend, who will be 31 when he arrives. With Lewis Brown, Elijah Taylor and Shaun Berrigan able to provide emergency dummy-half cover, Heremaia may well find himself squeezed out.

If he's worried, it doesn't show. Heremaia's focus is on a Warriors turnaround that will stretch to three games if they win in Manly tonight.

"Our defence has definitely sparked up," he said. "We are still making errors, but we are defending them really well at the moment, which is a pleasing sign. Confidence is up, the boys are passing the ball a bit more. We went into our shell at the start of the year and went to one-out football, which wasn't us and was boring to watch."