Tiana Raftstrand-Smith

Last updated

Tiana Raftstrand-Smith
Personal information
Born (2003-07-17) 17 July 2003 (age 21)
Auckland, New Zealand
Height173 cm (5 ft 8 in)
Weight84 kg (13 st 3 lb)
Playing information
Position Second-row, Centre, Prop
Club
YearsTeamPldTGFGP
2021–22 Gold Coast Titans 111106
2023– Nth Qld Cowboys 1660024
Total2771030
Representative
YearsTeamPldTGFGP
2021–22 Queensland 20000
2022–24 Māori All Stars 30000
2023 Prime Minister's XIII 10000
Source: [1]
As of 15 September 2024
Relatives Ebony Raftstrand-Smith (sister)
Portia Woodman (aunt)

Tiana Raftstrand-Smith (born 17 June 2003) is a professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Contents

A second-row , centre, she previously played for the Gold Coast Titans.

Background

Raftstrand-Smith was born in Auckland and is of Māori descent. [2] She played her junior rugby league for the Richmond Rovers before moving to the Gold Coast, Queensland as a 13-year old. [3] [4] In Australia, she attended Keebra Park State High School and played rugby league for the Parkwood Sharks. [5]

Raftstrand-Smith's aunt, Portia Woodman, is a New Zealand rugby sevens and rugby union international. [6]

Playing career

Early years

While at Keeba Park, Raftstrand-Smith was a member of the Australian rugby sevens Youth Development Program. [7]

In 2021 and 2022, she played for the Burleigh Bears in the QRL Women's Premiership, winning a Grand Final with the club in 2021. [8]

On 25 June 2021, the 18–year old Raftstrand-Smith started at second-row for Queensland in their State of Origin win over New South Wales. In August 2021, she signed with the Gold Coast Titans. [9]

2022

In February, Raftstrand-Smith represented the Māori All Stars against the Indigenous All Stars. [10]

In Round 1 of the delayed 2021 NRL Women's season, she made her NRLW debut for the Titans against the St George Illawarra Dragons. [11] On 24 June 2022, she came off the bench for Queensland in their 20–14 loss to New South Wales. [12]

2023

Raftstrand-Smith began the 2023 season playing for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the NSWRL Women's Premiership. [13]

On 20 May, Raftrand-Smith signed with the North Queensland Cowboys NRLW team on a two-year contract, alongside her younger sister Ebony. [14]

In Round 1 of the 2023 NRL Women's season, she made her debut for the Cowboys, starting at prop in a 16–6 loss to the Gold Coast Titans. [15]

2024

In Round 1 of the 2024 NRL Women's season, Raftstrand-Smith started at second-row in the Cowboys' 14–0 loss to the Cronulla Sharks. [16] In Round 2, she scored two tries in a 38–34 win over the St George Illawarra Dragons. [17]

On 9 November, she re-signed with the Cowboys until the end of the 2027 season. [18]

Related Research Articles

Tazmin Gray is an Australian rugby league footballer who last played for the Gold Coast Titans in the NRL Women's Premiership and the Burleigh Bears in the QRL Women's Premiership.

Tallisha Harden is an Australian rugby league footballer who captains the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Shaniah Power is an Australian rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Emma Manzelmann is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Tahlulah Tillett is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

April Ngatupuna is a New Zealand professional rugby footballer who currently plays for Queensland Reds in Super W.

Makenzie Weale is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

The 2023 Newcastle Knights season was the 36th in the club's history. Coached by Adam O'Brien and co-captained by Jayden Brailey and Kalyn Ponga, they competed in the NRL's 2023 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season in 5th place, thus reaching the finals. The Knights made it to the second week of finals, before being knocked out by the New Zealand Warriors.

Jasmine Peters is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Shellie Long is a Papua New Guinean professional rugby league footballer who plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership and played for her national team in the 2021 Women's Rugby League World Cup.

Jetaya Faifua is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

China Polata is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Queensland Cowboys Women</span> Australian rugby league football club

The North Queensland Cowboys Women is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest city in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier women's rugby league competition, the NRL Women's Premiership (NRLW).

Krystal Blackwell is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Bree Chester is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays as a second-row and lock forward for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership. She is an Indigenous All Stars representative.

Sareka Mooka is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Lily Peacock is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Alisha Foord is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Harata Butler is a professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

Ebony Raftstrand-Smith is a professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.

References

  1. ↑ "Tiana Raftstrand-Smith - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
  2. ↑ "Rollercoaster ride for Raftstrand-Smith in her return to Māori team". NRL. 8 February 2023.
  3. ↑ "Tāmaki Makaurau represented in All Star players, coaching and referees". Auckland Rugby League. 14 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "Te reo in a league of its own for young star". Inkl. 31 July 2015.
  5. ↑ "Rookie watch: Raftstrand-Smith ready to make titanic impact". NRL. 21 December 2021.
  6. ↑ "Tiana Raftstrand-Smith hopes to follow in her Aunty Portia Woodman's footsteps". Te Ao Maori News. 30 March 2017.
  7. ↑ "Keebra Park rising talent Tiana Raftstrand-Smith impressing in both league and rugby sevens". Gold Coast Bulletin. 30 July 2019.
  8. ↑ "Burleigh claim epic grand final win against Diehards". QRL. 6 June 2021.
  9. ↑ "First Look: Inaugural Titans NRLW squad revealed". Gold Coast Titans. 13 August 2021.
  10. ↑ "Maori v Indigenous All Stars: Both sides 1-18 with no late changes". National Rugby League. 12 February 2022.
  11. ↑ "History made, as first ever Titans NRLW team selected". Gold Coast Titans. 22 February 2022.
  12. ↑ "QRL confirms Harvey Norman Queensland Maroons squad". QRL. 6 June 2022.
  13. ↑ "Bulldogs Academy Team List: Semi Finals". Canterbury Bulldogs. 18 April 2023.
  14. ↑ "Cowboys sign Raftstrand-Smith sisters". NQ Cowboys. 20 May 2023.
  15. ↑ "Final team list: Eight Cowboys named to make NRLW debuts". NQ Cowboys. 22 July 2023.
  16. ↑ "Tonegato leads the way as Sharks shutout Cowboys". NRL.com. 27 July 2024.
  17. ↑ "Cowboys down Dragons in 13-try thriller in Townsville". NRL.com. 4 August 2024.
  18. ↑ "Cowboys extend seven". NQ Cowboys. 9 December 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.