Date of birth | 12 September 2000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Place of birth | Auckland, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 167 cm (5 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 70 kg (11 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rugby league career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Centre, Five-eighth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: RLP As of 19 December 2024 |
Abigail Roache (born 12 September 2000) is a New Zealand professional rugby league player who plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.
Primarily a centre, she has represented New Zealand and previously played for the Newcastle Knights. In rugby union, she played for the Chiefs Manawa in Super Rugby Aupiki and provincially for the Auckland Storm.
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Roache is the younger sister of former NRL player, Nathaniel Roache. [1] She tore her ACL in both knees before turning 20 and had further surgery to repair meniscus injuries. [1]
Roache was named in Auckland Storm's squad for the 2019 Farah Palmer Cup season. [2] She joined Chiefs Manawa for the 2023 Super Rugby Aupiki season. [3] [4]
In 2022, Roache was awarded the Cathy Friend Women's Player of the Year for her outstanding performance for the Richmond Roses in the Auckland Rugby League competition. [5] [6]
Roache was initially left out of the Kiwi Ferns squad for the delayed 2021 Rugby League World Cup, but received a late call-up when Kararaina Wira-Kohu withdrew due to a torn calf days before the tournament. [7] [8] [9] [1] She made her Kiwi Ferns test debut on 10 November 2022 in their pool game loss to the Jillaroos at the World Cup. [5] [1] She also featured in her sides 20–6 semi-final victory over England. [10] [1] She started in the final, where the Kiwi Ferns lost 54–4 to the Jillaroos. [11] [12] [13]
In May 2023, Roache signed a 2-year contract with NRL Women's Premiership side Newcastle Knights. [14] In round 1 of the 2023 NRLW season, she made her NRLW debut for the Knights against the St. George Illawarra Dragons, [15] scoring a try in the Knights' 32–16 win. [16]
In October 2023, Roache played at centre in the Knights' 24-18 Grand Final win over the Gold Coast Titans. [17]
After 20 games with the Knights, Roache parted ways with the club at the end of the 2024 season. [18]
On 18 December 2024, she joined the North Queensland Cowboys on a three-year contract. [19]