Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Lavinia Kitai | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 18 August 2004 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 175 cm (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 85 kg (13 st 5 lb; 187 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Prop | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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As of 27 November 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lavinia Kitai (born 18 August 2004) is a Cook Islands professional rugby league footballer who currently contracted to play for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the 2026 season of the NRL Women's Premiership. [5] Primarily a Prop, Kitai is a Cook Islands representative. [2]
Recruited from the Parkwood Sharks, Kitai played for the Brisbane Tigers in both the Under 19 (three matches) and open-age QRL Women's Premiership (four matches) in 2022. [2] [6] [7] [8]
Following a transfer to Souths Logan Magpies in 2023, Kitai played four matches for that club in the QRL Women's Premiership. [9]
In 2024, Kitai played seven matches for the Burleigh Bears in the QRL Women's Premiership between March and May, including in a semi-final loss, and then nine matches for the Cronulla Sharks in the NSWRL Women's Premiership between July and September. [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Katai was signed by the New Zealand Warriors in December 2024 ahead of their return to the NRLW in the 2025 NRL Women's season. [2] Katai made her NRLW debut in Round 1. [15]
Kitai signed with the St. George Illawarra Dragons on a three-year deal in October 2025. [5]
In 2021, Kitai was selected to play for the Queensland City Under 17 team in an early October match against a Queensland Country team. [16] In June 2022, Kitai played for the Queensland Rubys Under 19 in the National Championships. [17] Following the tournament, Kitai was selected for and played in the Queensland Under 19 team. [18] [19]
Kita was selected in the Cook Islands squad for the postponed 2021 Women's Rugby League World Cup held in October-November 2022. [20] Her first appearance for the Cook Islands was against the England Knights, in which both teams played extended benches. [21]
Kitai made her senior international debut for the Cook Islands in as a starting edge forward against the Australian Jillaroos in the opening round at LNER Community Stadium in York. The Cook Islands lost 74–0 to the eventual tournament winners. [22] [23] Katai also played in the second round loss to New Zealand and third and final round win over France. [24] [25]
Kitai played in the Cook Islands' single matches in the 2023 and 2024 Pacific Championships. [26] [27] Playing in both matches as the Cook Islands won the Women's Pacific Bowl in the 2025 tournament, Katai made her seventh consecutive appearance for her international team. [28] [29] [30]