Jeremiah Nanai

Jeremiah Nanai

Personal information
Full name	Jeremiah Nanai
Born	(2003-02-18) 18 February 2003 (age 21) Henderson, New Zealand
Height	186 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	104 kg (16 st 5 lb)
Playing information
Position	Second-row
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 2021– North Qld Cowboys 63 37 0 0 148 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 2022–24 Queensland 7 2 0 0 4 2022 Australia 2 2 0 0 8 2024 Samoa 1 0 0 0 0
Source: [1] As of 27 October 2024

Jeremiah Nanai (born 18 February 2003) is an Australian and Samoan international rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward for the North Queensland Cowboys in the National Rugby League (NRL).

He has played at representative level for Queensland in State of Origin as well as for both Australia and Samoa.

Background

Nanai was born in Auckland, New Zealand and raised in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. ^[2] He is of Samoan descent. ^{[3] [4]}

He began playing rugby league at age 13 for the Cairns Kangaroos and attended Trinity Bay State High School, where he was selected for the Australian Schoolboys under-15 merit side in 2018. ^{[5] [6]}

In 2019, Nanai signed with the North Queensland Cowboys and moved to Townsville, Queensland, where he attended Kirwan State High School. ^[7]

Playing career

Early career

In July 2019, Nanai represented the Northern Marlins at the QRL Under-16 Junior State Championships. ^[8] On 18 September 2019, he started at second-row in Kirwan State High School's NRL Schoolboy Cup win over Westfields Sports High School. ^[9] On 29 September 2019, he represented Queensland Country under-16, scoring a hat trick and being named Man of the Match in their 44–4 win over Queensland City under-16. ^[10]

In January 2020, Nanai was selected in the Queensland Under-18 Emerging Origin squad. ^[11] In September 2020, Nanai played for Kirwan in their Queensland state final win over Palm Beach Currumbin State High School, scoring two tries. ^[12]

On 7 October 2020, Nanai joined North Queensland's NRL squad on a development contract for the 2021 season. ^[13]

2021

Nanai began the 2021 season playing for the Northern Pride in the Queensland Cup. ^[14]

In Round 22 of the 2021 NRL season, Nanai made his NRL debut against the Wests Tigers. ^{[15] [16]}

2022

In round 3 of the 2022 NRL season, Nanai scored a hat-trick for North Queensland against arch rivals Brisbane in a 38–12 victory. ^[17]

In April, Nanai signed a one-year contract extension to remain at North Queensland until the end of 2023. ^[18]

In round 7, Nanai was sent to the sin bin and later scored a try during North Queensland's 30–4 victory over the Gold Coast. ^[19]

In round 11, Nanai scored two tries for North Queensland in their shock 36–6 upset victory over Melbourne. ^[20]

On 30 May, Nanai was selected to debut for the Queensland State of Origin team for game one of the 2022 State of Origin series. Nanai was taken from the field during Queensland's 16–10 victory with an ankle injury. ^[21]

In round 20, Nanai scored two tries for North Queensland in a 34–8 victory over St. George Illawarra. ^[22]

Nanai finished a great year receiving the Dally M Rookie of the Year award and the Dally M Second Rower of the year and finishing the season with 17 tries from 23 matches. ^[23]

In October he was named in the Australia squad for the 2021 Rugby League World Cup. ^[24]

2023

In round 2 of the 2023 NRL season, Nanai scored two tries for North Queensland in their 28-16 loss against arch-rivals Brisbane. ^[25] In round 4 against the Gold Coast, Nanai was sent to the sin bin and later suspended for two matches after a dangerous throw on Phillip Sami. Nanai played two games for Queensland in the 2023 State of Origin series which Queensland won 2-1. ^[26] On 25 July, it was announced that Nanai would miss at least four matches after he suffered a high grade AC joint injury during North Queensland's victory over Parramatta. ^{[27] [28]} Nanai played 13 games for North Queensland in the 2023 NRL season and scored six tries as the club finished 11th on the table. ^[29]

2024

In round 9 of the 2024 NRL season, Nanai scored two tries in North Queensland's 28-26 loss against the Dolphins. ^[30] In round 12, Nanai scored two tries for North Queensland in their 42-28 victory over strugglers the Wests Tigers. ^[31]

Nanai was named in the second row for Queensland ahead of game one in the 2024 State of Origin series. ^[32] Nanai played 23 games for North Queensland in the 2024 NRL season as they finished 5th on the table. He played in both finals games for North Queensland as they were eliminated in the second week by Cronulla. ^[33]

Statistics

Year	Team	Games	Tries	Pts
2021	North Queensland Cowboys	4	1	4
2022		23	17	68
2023		13	6	24
2024		23	13	52
	Totals	63	37	148

References

1. "Jeremiah Nanai - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
2. "Jeremiah Nanai working to achieve goal of Cowboys debut". Cairns Post. 27 January 2021.
3. Bruce, Jasper (24 June 2022). "Samoa a chance for Cup glory: Nofoaluma". The West Australian.
4. Chisholm, Ed (28 March 2022). "Jeremiah Nanai's NRL future, rep allegiance cast into the spotlight after teen sensations tears apart Broncos". Sporting News.
5. "Queensland team claim 15 Years title". QRL. 6 July 2018.
6. "Trinity Bay teen Manihi Maurangi breaks Kalyn Ponga's Queensland schoolboys record". Cairns Post. 1 June 2018.
7. "League giant Jeremiah Nanai is ready to bulldoze his way to the top". Townsville Bulletin. 28 January 2020.
8. "QRL Junior State Championships team lists". QRL. 3 July 2019.
9. "2019". 18th Man. 13 December 2018.
10. "Queensland Under 16 Country too good for City". QRL. 29 September 2019.
11. "Junior Cowboys take part in u18s Qld Emerging Origin camp". NQ Cowboys. 17 January 2020.
12. "Schoolboys: Kirwan win Queensland final". 18th Man. 17 September 2020.
13. "Cowboys promote four young guns to NRL squad for 2021". NQ Cowboys. 7 October 2020.
14. "Cowboys youngsters named to return from injury in Q-Cup". NQ Cowboys. 6 April 2021.
15. "Cowboys team list: Round 22 v Tigers". NQ Cowboys. 10 August 2021.
16. "Manly thumps Parramatta Eels 56-10, as South Sydney and Wests Tigers enjoy NRL wins". ABC News. 14 August 2021.
17. "Brisbane Broncos 'monstered' by teenage prodigy Jeremiah Nanai". www.news.com.au.
18. "Cowboys re-sign Jeremiah Nanai". www.cowboys.com.au. 4 April 2022.
19. "'What an athlete': Cowboys young gun goes from zero to hero in just 40 seconds". www.foxsports.com.au. 23 April 2022.
20. "'Unsung hero' stars as Cowboys pass 'big test'; telling Bellamy moment in Storm loss: 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au. 21 May 2022.
21. "'Petrified': Jeremiah Nanai's injury shook Cowboys coach Todd Payten". www.news.com.au.
22. "Cowboys break Kogarah hoodoo in big win over Dragons". www.nrl.com. 31 July 2022.
23. "'See it in their eyes': The late-season pact and 'massive sacrifice' behind Eels surge". www.foxsports.com.au. 23 September 2022.
24. Full list of every squad at the Rugby League World Cup 2021
25. "Reece Walsh stars as Brisbane Broncos beat Cowboys 28-16 in Queensland NRL derby, Cronulla edges Parramatta 30-26 in thriller". ABC News. 10 March 2023.
26. "NRL Judiciary Round 4: Jack Wighton, Jeremiah Nanai and Junior Paulo banned". www.sportingnews.com. 28 March 2023.
27. "NRL Casualty Ward: Finucane out for season; Surgery for Paseka". www.nrl.com. 10 November 2024.
28. "New South Wales Blues avoid State of Origin series whitewash with 24-10 victory over Queensland Maroons in Sydney". ABC News. 12 July 2023.
29. "NRL 2023: North Queensland Cowboys season review". www.sportingnews.com. 7 September 2023.
30. "Phins' statement win as hat-trick hero shines; NQ's defensive woes laid bare - What we learned". www.foxsports.com.au. 4 May 2024.
31. "Star's Origin statement as another faces nervous wait in Cowboys' win over Tigers". www.foxsports.com.au. 24 May 2024.
32. "Maroons squad named for Origin Game I". QRL. 6 June 2024.
33. "The Mole: Cowboys show improvement in 2024 but worrying finals stat sparks thorny question". www.nine.com.au. 23 September 2024.

External links

• North Queensland Cowboys profile