NRL hopeful and Queensland Cup star Mitchell Cronin has been remembered as a talented leader, after his shock death at home in Brisbane on Friday.
Cronin reportedly suffered a heart attack while in a pool, where he was cooling down after a weights session.
The 27-year-old spent time with both the Broncos and Canberra without making his NRL debut, before guiding Wynnum Manly to the Queensland Cup final last year.
He made two appearances at the Auckland Nines at Brisbane and Canberra, where he was pushing hard for first-grade selection.
Kiwis winger and former Raiders teammate Jordan Rapana took to Instagram to pay tribute to Cronin.
"Man I still don't want to believe it!" Rapana wrote.
"You got me through some of the toughest times of my life! I love you my brother, fly high you absolute legend, love you forever brother! Okioki teina... QUEENSLANDER!!!!"
Queensland Rugby League competitions manager Dave Maiden said Cronin was an outstanding and inspiring leader.
"Mitchell was a fantastic leader of men and a quality player," Maiden said.
"More importantly though, he was a quality human being who will be mourned by many and missed by all.
Cronin's Seagulls team called their club captain "exceptional".
"We are devastated by the passing of our captain Mitch Cronin and we send out love to Chris, Andrea, Ben, Amy and the Cronin family," said Seagulls chief executive Hanan Laban.
"Mitch was an exceptional young man who was loved and respected by his teammates, his coaching staff, our supporters and the wider rugby league community."
