Isaiah Papali'i

Isaiah Papali'i is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a prop for the Parramatta Eels in the NRL, and has played for Samoa and New Zealand at international level. He previously played for the New Zealand Warriors.

Isaiah Papali'i
Personal information
Born (1998-09-20) 20 September 1998
Auckland, New Zealand
Height182 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight108 kg (17 st 0 lb)
Playing information
PositionLock, Second-row, Prop
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2017–20 New Zealand Warriors 63 7 0 0 28
2021– Parramatta Eels 0 0 0 0 0
Total 63 7 0 0 28
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2018 Samoa 1 0 0 0 0
2018– New Zealand 1 0 1 0 2
As of 18 November 2020
Source: [1]

Background

Papali'i was born in Auckland, New Zealand.

Early years

In 2014, Papali'i won two gold medals at the Oceania Power Lifting Championships in New Caledonia. His parents own a gym in Avondale.[2]

Papali'i attended Mount Albert Grammar School and played for their first XV rugby union side, at the same time as he was playing rugby league for the Junior Warriors. The First XV won the championship in 2016 and Papali'i won the team's player of the year award.[2]

Playing career

Papali'i played his junior rugby league for the Te Atatu Roosters,[3] before being signed by the New Zealand Warriors. In 2015, he toured Australia with the New Zealand under-18 side.[4]

2016

In 2016, Papali'i played for the New Zealand Warriors' NYC team.[5] In May, he played for the Junior Kiwis against the Junior Kangaroos.[6] In October, he re-signed with the Warriors on a 3-year contract until the end of 2019.[3] That year, Papali’i mixed rugby league and rugby union, making 11 appearances for the Warriors' NYC side, while also playing for Mount Albert Grammar School's title-winning First XV.[7]

2017

In round 1 of the 2017 NRL season, Papali'i made his NRL debut for the Warriors against the Newcastle Knights.[8][9]

2018

In 2018, Papali'i made 20 appearances for the club as they finished 8th on the table and qualified for the finals. Papali'i played from the bench in the clubs 27-12 elimination final loss against Penrith. In October, he was named in the Kiwis’ squad for four-Test campaign against Australia and England as well as being selected for the Junior Kiwis for their clash against the Junior Kangaroos. He re-signed with the Warriors until the end of the 2020 NRL season.[10]

2019

On 12 March, Papali'i was stood down by the warriors due to a drink driving offence which occurred back on January 1. It was reported that Papali'i did not provide police with a breath test.[11]

"We expect better from our players and anyone who falls short of our standards will be appropriately dealt with irrespective of the time of year or their standing within the club," Warriors CEO Cameron George said, "Isaiah is extremely remorseful for his actions. He feels like he's let his team-mates, the club, our fans and his family down. He is now determined to win back their respect and will also be fighting hard to earn back his spot in the team."[12]

The same year, Isaiah's mother Lorina Papali'i was playing for the New Zealand Warriors in the inaugural NRL Women's Premiership, an unprecedented instance of a mother and son representing the same club in the same season.[13]

2020

He played 15 games for New Zealand in the 2020 NRL season as the club missed the finals. In October, he signed a contract to join Parramatta for the 2021 season.[14]

References
  1. "Isaiah Papalii - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. 20 September 1998. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  2. "New Zealand Warriors debutant Isaiah Papali'i: 'It was a dream come true' – Sport – NZ Herald News". Nzherald.co.nz. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  3. Warriors.co.nz (7 October 2016). "New deals for Vodafone Warriors trio". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  4. Schools heroes added to 18S scoop.co.nz, 23 September 2015
  5. "P". Nyc Database. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  6. "Updated: Representative Round team lists". NRL.com. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  7. "Another signing with Papali'i locked in". Warriors. 3 October 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
  8. "Updated team lists: Warriors v Knights". NRL.com. 18 December 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  9. NRL Digital Media. "Thompson confirmed in NRL side – Warriors". Warriors.kiwi. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  10. "Another signing with Papali'i locked in". Warriors. 3 October 2018. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  11. "Papali'i stood down after drink-driving offence". www.nrl.com.
  12. "Warriors suspend Isaiah Papali'i from NRL season-opener against Bulldogs over drink-driving". Stuff. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  13. "Official NRL profile of Isaiah Papali'i for Warriors". Warriors. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  14. "Penrith confirm departure of six players". www.foxsports.com.au.
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