Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born | Auckland, New Zealand | 23 June 2000|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 97 kg (15 st 4 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Centre, Wing, Fullback | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] As of 16 March 2024 |
Starford To'a (born 23 June 2000) is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a centre for the Wests Tigers in the National Rugby League (NRL).
He previously played for the Newcastle Knights as a winger in the NRL.
To'a was born in Auckland, New Zealand [2] and is of Tongan, Māori and European descent. He attended St Paul's College, Auckland. [3]
In 2018, he moved to Australia to play for the Newcastle Knights, after being scouted by a recruitment manager for the Knights in 2016 at a New Zealand national tournament in Rotorua. [2] He played for the Knights' Jersey Flegg Cup team. [4] At the end of 2018, he played for the Australian Schoolboys and was named man of the match in their first game. [5]
In 2019, To'a joined the Knights' NRL squad for pre-season training and played in a first-grade trial match. [6] In June, he re-signed with the Knights on a 2-year contract until the end of 2021. [7] In round 25 of the 2019 NRL season, he made his NRL debut for the Knights against the Penrith Panthers [8] and scored a try. [9] On 29 September, he will play for the Junior Kiwis against the Junior Kangaroos. [10]
He made seven appearances for Newcastle in the 2020 NRL season and scored four tries. To'a did not feature in the club's first finals campaign since 2013. [11]
In 2021, To'a made 12 appearances for the Knights, scoring 6 tries. [12]
In January 2022, To'a was granted a release from the final two years of his Newcastle contract to join the Wests Tigers on a two-year contract effective immediately. [13] To'a played a total of 21 matches for the Wests Tigers in the 2022 NRL season and scored 3 tries as the club finished bottom of the table and claimed the Wooden Spoon for the first time. [14]
In round 12 of the 2023 NRL season, To'a scored two tries for the Wests Tigers in their record breaking victory at 66-18 against the North Queensland. [15] In round 24, To'a scored two tries for the Wests Tigers in their 22-30 loss against the New Zealand Warriors. [16] To'a played a total of 18 games for the Wests Tigers in the 2023 NRL season and scored seven tries as the club finished with the Wooden Spoon for a second straight year. [17] In the end of season internationals, he was selected and made his debut for the Mate Ma’a Tonga team against England, where he scored a hat trick in a 34-16 win.
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