Controversial Cronulla chairman Barry Pierce was re-elected unopposed on Thursday night and handed life membership of the Sharks leagues club, as three new directors were voted onto the embattled board.

Already a life member of the Cronulla football club, Pierce, who has been under intense scrutiny since details of a 2002 sex scandal involving Matthew Johns were revealed by the ABC's Four Corners program earlier this month, was granted the leagues club honour at the Sharks' annual general meeting.

But in a sign members were in the mood for some change, Ricky Surnace, Paul Walker and Damien Irvine became the new members on the combined board of the leagues and football clubs.

They replace Brett Crowley and Paul Tubridy, who were voted off, and Frank Doran, who did not stand for re-election.

More than 250 members turned up amidst a series of crises which have engulfed the club, including mounting debt reportedly totalling more than $12 million, a positive drugs test for star player Reni Maitua and a racism row involving captain Paul Gallen.

Several spoke "passionately" about the club's future, according to a club spokesman, in particular quizzing the board about the proposed $100 million property development adjacent to Toyota Stadium due to go before Sutherland Shire Council next month.

"The proposal the board put forward is this club, with its assets, is more sustainable than every other club in Sydney other than the Bulldogs," the spokesman said.

Exactly what the elections mean, though, remains unclear because the previous board had already called for an extraordinary general meeting to conduct a fresh vote and make changes to the club's constitution before July 31.

Meanwhile, Bulldogs veteran Luke Patten has offered his NRL rivals at the Sharks some hope, suggesting his club's turnaround is the perfect blueprint.

Only last year it was the Bulldogs in free-fall as crises such as Willie Mason and Sonny Bill Williams' walkouts culminated in a wooden spoon for the Belmore club.

"I guess the club just made some tough decisions," Patten told AAP on Thursday.

"Anyone that was stuffing up, they got rid of them and they brought (CEO) Todd Greenberg in and he just made decision after decision really - new coach, all new staff, new players and with that everything's changed.

"There's a new attitude and everyone's working really hard for that and maybe the Sharks, that is something they can look at.

"I don't want to comment too much because I don't really know too much about their club but maybe it's something that they can look at.

"A lot of people say a change is as good as a holiday and I think that's sort of worked for us.

"I think we were getting a little bit stale there, as much as the amount of respect I have for Folkesy (former coach Steve Folkes), I think the club did need a change.

"And I think at the moment, even though it's only the halfway mark of the season, it's really shown that it's a good thing for us."

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