Nita Maynard

Nita Maynard

Personal information
Born	(1992-07-07) 7 July 1992 (age 32) Gisborne, New Zealand
Height	157 cm (5 ft 2 in)
Weight	60 kg (9 st 6 lb)
Playing information
Rugby league
Position	Hooker
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 2018–20 Sydney Roosters 11 1 0 0 4 2021 Parramatta Eels 4 0 0 0 0 2022 Brisbane Broncos 3 0 0 0 0 2023–24 Newcastle Knights 19 0 0 0 0 Total 37 1 0 0 4 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 2017–22 New Zealand 13 3 0 0 12 2018 New South Wales 1 0 0 0 0 2019 New Zealand 9s 4 2 0 0 8 2021 Māori All Stars 1 0 0 0 0
Rugby union
Position	Scrum-half
Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 2014 Australia 6 0 0 0 0 2016 Australia 7s
Source: [1] As of 13 October 2024

Nita Maynard (born 7 July 1992) is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer.

Primarily a hooker, she is a New Zealand and New South Wales representative. Before switching to rugby league, she represented Australia in rugby union and rugby sevens. She previously played for the Sydney Roosters, Parramatta Eels, Brisbane Broncos and Newcastle Knights in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Background

Born in Gisborne, New Zealand, Maynard moved to Australia in 2011.

Playing career

Rugby union

In 2014, she represented the Australian Wallaroos and in 2016, represented the Australia 7s team. She played for the Parramatta Two Blues before switching to rugby league in 2017. ^{[2] [3]}

Rugby league

In 2017, Maynard joined the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks team in the NSWRL Women's Premiership. ^[4] In October 2017, she was selected in the New Zealand 2017 Women's Rugby League World Cup squad. ^[5] On 2 December 2017, she came off the bench in New Zealand's 16–23 final loss to Australia. ^[6]

In May 2018, she represented NSW City at the Women's National Championships. ^[7] On 22 June 2018, she represented New South Wales in their 16–10 win over Queensland. ^[8] This would be Maynard's lone appearance for the Blues, as in April 2019, revised eligibility laws were introduced which ruled her ineligible to represent New South Wales. ^[9]

On 16 June 2018, she signed with the Sydney Roosters NRL Women's Premiership team. ^[10] In Round 1 of the 2018 NRL Women's season, she made her debut for the Roosters in their 4–10 loss to the New Zealand Warriors. On 30 September 2018, she started at hooker in the Roosters' 12–34 Grand Final loss to the Brisbane Broncos. ^[11]

On 19 October 2019, Maynard scored the winning try for New Zealand in the final of the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s against Australia. ^[12]

On 25 October 2020, she started at hooker in the Roosters' 20–10 NRLW Grand Final loss to the Broncos. ^[13]

On 20 February 2021, she represented the Māori All Stars in their 24–0 win over the Indigenous All Stars. ^[14]

In October 2022 she was selected for the New Zealand squad at the delayed 2021 Women's Rugby League World Cup in England. ^[15]

In May 2023, she signed with the Newcastle Knights. ^[16] In round 1 of the 2023 NRLW season, she made her Knights debut against the St. George Illawarra Dragons. ^[17]

In October 2023, Maynard played off the bench in the Knights' 24-18 Grand Final win over the Gold Coast Titans. ^[18]

After 19 games with the Knights, Maynard parted ways with the club at the end of the 2024 season. ^[19]

References

1. "Nita Maynard - Playing Career - RLP".
2. "Nita Maynard". rugby.com.au.
3. "Whirlwind learning curve for rugby league rookie". Gisborne Herald. 16 November 2017.
4. "Maynard has gone straight to the top". NRL. 30 September 2018.
5. "Maynard's dreams come true". Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks. 25 October 2017.
6. "Ferns Stand Tall In Maynard's Backyard". NSWRL. 17 November 2017.
7. "Women's Nationals the perfect Origin appetiser". NRL. 29 May 2018.
8. "Women's State of Origin 2018 player profiles, team lists". The Daily Telegraph. 22 June 2018.
9. "No more Kiwis in Women's State of Origin". The Women's Game. 24 May 2019.
10. "Roosters Announce NRLW Marquee Signings". Sydney Roosters. 17 June 2018.
11. "NRLW Late Mail - Grand Final". Sydney Roosters. 30 September 2018.
12. "Jillaroos lose first game since 2017 as Kiwi Ferns win women's World Nines final". Fox Sports Australia. 19 October 2019.
13. "NRLW grand final: Where it will be won and lost". NRL. 23 October 2020.
14. "McGregor, Harden to lead talented teams". NRL. 20 February 2021.
15. Priest, Craig (2 October 2022). "Kiwi Ferns name 24-strong World Cup squad". New Zealand Rugby League. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
16. "Two More Signings for Knights in NRLW". Newcastle Knights. 19 May 2023.
17. "Knights v Dragons Round 1 NRLW Team List". Newcastle Knights. 18 July 2023.
18. "2023 Telstra Women's Premiership - Grand Final - Newcastle Knights (W) 24 def. Gold Coast Titans (W) 18 - RLP". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
19. "Instagram". www.instagram.com.

External links

• Newcastle Knights profile
• Brisbane Broncos profile
• Sydney Roosters profile