Starford To'a

Last updated

Starford To'a
Personal information
Born (2000-06-23) 23 June 2000 (age 25)
Auckland, New Zealand
Height183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight97 kg (15 st 4 lb)
Playing information
Position Centre, Wing, Fullback
Club
YearsTeamPldTGFGP
2019–21 Newcastle Knights 20110044
2022– Wests Tigers 62190076
Total823000120
Representative
YearsTeamPldTGFGP
2023– Tonga 11004
Source: [1]
As of 6 September 2025

Starford To'a (born 23 June 2000) is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a centre for the Wests Tigers in the National Rugby League.

Contents

He previously played for the Newcastle Knights as a winger in the NRL.

Background

To'a was born in Auckland, New Zealand [2] and is of Tongan and European descent. He attended St Paul's College, Auckland. [3]

Playing career

Early years

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]

2019

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]

2020

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]

2021

In 2021, To'a made 12 appearances for the Knights, scoring 6 tries. [12]

2022

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]

2023

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.

2024 & 2025

To'a was limited to only three appearances with the Wests Tigers in the 2024 NRL season as the club finished with the wooden spoon for a third straight year. In round 13 of the 2025 NRL season, he scored two tries in Wests 32-38 loss against North Queensland. [18] On 15 August, Wests announced that To'a had extended his contract for a further two seasons. [19] To'a played a total of 19 games for the Wests Tigers in the 2025 NRL season as the club finished 13th on the table. [20]

Statistics

YearTeamGamesTriesPts
2019 Newcastle colours.svg Newcastle Knights 114
20207416
202112624
2022 Wests Tigers colours.svg Wests Tigers 21312
202318728
2024300
202519936
Totals8230120

References

  1. ↑ "Starford To'a - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
  2. 1 2 "The future: Meet Starford To'a". Newcastle Knights. 7 November 2018.
  3. ↑ "The future: Meet Starford To'a". Newcastle Knights. 7 November 2018.
  4. ↑ "Players". 24 September 2018.
  5. ↑ "Schoolboys post record win in first Tour game". 27 November 2018.
  6. ↑ TOOHEY, BARRY (5 March 2019). "Rookie Knight Starford To'a's dazzling feet sign of big future". Newcastle Herald.
  7. ↑ "Exciting back Starford To'a awarded new deal". Newcastle Knights. 24 June 2019.
  8. ↑ TOOHEY, BARRY (6 September 2019). "Teenage winger Starford To'a to make Knights debut against Panthers". Newcastle Herald.
  9. ↑ "Penrith Panthers trounce Newcastle Knights to send James Maloney out on a high". National Rugby League. 8 September 2019.
  10. ↑ "Three Knights named in Junior Kiwis side". Newcastle Knights. 11 September 2019.
  11. ↑ "2020 season by the numbers". www.nrl.com.
  12. ↑ "Custom Match List - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
  13. ↑ Tigers, Wests. "Wests Tigers sign Starford Toa" . Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  14. ↑ "Canberra Raiders hand out 56-10 NRL drubbing to Wests Tigers as Cronulla beats Newcastle Knights 38-16". www.abc.net.au.
  15. ↑ "Felise Kaufusi in doubt for State of Origin I as Melbourne Storm get past Dolphins 24-16". www.abc.net.au.
  16. ↑ "New Zealand Warriors down Wests Tigers 30-22, Sydney Roosters beat Dolphins 30-14, South Sydney defeats St George Illawarra 26-14". www.abc.net.au.
  17. ↑ "'Circus act' that summed up year from hell... and big call left for Benji: Wests Tigers Brutal Review". www.foxsports.com.au.
  18. ↑ "DCE shines in Manly cakewalk as woeful Broncos' slump goes from bad to worse: What we learned". www.foxsports.com.au.
  19. ↑ "To'a signs contract extension to remain a Tiger until 2028". Wests Tigers. 15 August 2025. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  20. ↑ "The Mole's season review: Late season form proved Wests Tigers 'fell apart' after Galvin 'squabble'". www.nine.com.au.
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