Australian Sisters Stirring Up Waves With Wigan Warriors Aim for Wembley History

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Shaniah represented a significant acquisition for Denis Betts' team during the off-season, after previously playing for clubs such as the New Zealand Warriors, Gold Coast Titans, Sydney Roosters, and North Queensland Cowboys in her native country.

The individual, who is 28 years old, has additionally played for Queensland in the State of Origin series four times and has been part of the Indigenous All Stars team four times as well.

At the same time, Shaniah’s younger sibling Tiana, instrumental in securing back-to-back titles for the Townsville Western Lions in the Townsville & District League, joined her sister in relocating to Wigan. The duo now shares accommodation with another recent addition, Emily Veivers, an international player representing Papua New Guinea.

Elaborating on where the moves originated from, Shaniah explained Wigan Today “I participated in the NRLW down under in Australia, and when Wigan initially approached me about it, I told Tiana, 'What if we both gave it a shot?' And she responded, 'I’m in.' So once things aligned properly, I reached out to Denis and asked, 'Could my sister join for a tryout? She can stay at my place,' and he simply replied, 'Sure.'"

Tiana joined me, and Denis has been quite pleased with her training and performance.

We didn't visit during the peak cold season, but it still caught us off guard. Before I arrived, I remember having a conversation with Denis where we discussed Emily, who had moved here from Australia as well. He mentioned, 'Oh, she came over when it wasn't too bad; the temperature reached four degrees.' And I replied, 'Denis, did you really say four degrees? It's currently 40 degrees in Australia!' So, we transitioned directly from 40-degree weather back home to only four degrees here.

Shaniah collaborates with the club’s Community Foundation during the weekdays, all while she continues to play. Meanwhile, speedy winger Tiana has kept up her duties as an Indigenous Health Worker from a remote location.

I have a position back in Australia," Tiana mentioned. "My role is on the health care team as an 'Indigenous Health Worker.' This allows me to handle administrative tasks and data management, such as scheduling patient follow-ups and similar duties. It’s great because I can maintain oversight of these processes.

When I initially discussed this with my CEO, I said 'an opportunity has arisen, but it's in another country,' and he responded with 'sure thing, we'll sort something out.' And now here I am.

The Power siblings are embodying their family name at present, as Shaniah has played in each of Wigan’s first five matches in 2025, finding the back of the net two times, whereas Tiana has touched down for five tries across just three games, notably earning Player of the Match honors during Wigan’s emphatic 40-6 victory against defending Women’s Super League champs York Valkyrie.

I'm really enjoying my time here," Tiana went on. "This is certainly a fresh experience since I've always played in Australia before, but getting to come over with my sister and having the opportunity to play alongside her for Wigan and even get to participate in several games together—it's simply incredible.

I adore the ambiance here, I enjoy being part of this squad, and I appreciate all that Wangan offers us along with their backing. It's an entirely new chapter, yet I'm thoroughly enjoying every bit of it.

Shaniah and Tiana aim to make history next month as the Wigan Warriors prepare to compete at Wembley Stadium for the inaugural time in the Women’s Challenge Cup final. This event marks the first instance where a Wigan team has played against their opponents, St Helens, in a championship match at the updated Wembley grounds.

"I believe the enthusiasm and the tears witnessed on the sidelines following our semi-final victory against Leeds highlighted just how significant this moment truly is—not merely reaching the finals, but having the Wigan Warriors Women’s team compete at Wembley for the very first time," Shaniah commented.

The Power siblings, hailing from North Queensland with a Sicilian mother and an Indigenous Australian father, aim to leverage their experiences gained in the northern hemisphere off the field as well.

We have already visited Scotland, Ireland, and Portugal," Shaniah mentioned. "We're planning a one-day trip to Brussels and I also hope to make it to Barcelona. Since we have two weeks off at the end of July, we'll be heading to Sicily.