In 2017, he moved to the Gold Coast to play at the Currumbin Eagles in their undefeated U16 premiership winning side under the guise of ex Melbourne Storm player and now coach Matt Geyer.

in the Currumbin U16 side, Dearden played alongside fellow Queensland team mate Xavier Coates and current Bulldogs half, Toby Sexton.

[3] In 2018, he played for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Mal Meninga Cup side, who made it to the semi-finals of the competition, and later represented the Queensland under-18 team.

[4][5] Later that season, he was a member of Palm Beach Currumbin State High School's ARL Schoolboy Cup winning side, receiving the Peter Sterling Medal for player of the tournament.

[9] Dearden began the 2021 season playing for the Souths Logan Magpies in the Queensland Cup, before being recalled into the Brisbane side in Round 3.

[17] Dearden played 23 matches for North Queensland in the 2022 NRL season as the club finished third on the table and qualified for the finals.

[24] On 18 October, Dearden made his Test debut for Australia, starting at five-eighth and scoring a try in their 18–0 win over Tonga in the Pacific Championships.