John Asiata

John Asiata
Personal information
Full name Atalani Selesele-Asiata[1][2]
Nickname Johnny[3]
Born (1993-04-19) 19 April 1993
Penrith, New South Wales, Australia
Height 183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight 108 kg (17 st 0 lb)
Playing information
Position Lock, Second-row
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2014– North Queensland 37 0 0 0 0
Source: [4]

Atalani "John" Asiata (born 19 April 1993) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys of the National Rugby League. Primarily a lock or second rower, Asiata was part of the Cowboys' 2015 NRL premiership and 2016 World Club Challenge winning sides.

Background

Born in Penrith, New South Wales, Asiata is of Samoan descent and played his junior football for the Wentworthville Magpies, attending Patrician Brothers' College, Blacktown.[5] In 2009, Asiata was a member of the Parramatta Eels side that finished runners-up in the Harold Matthews Cup.[6] In 2010, he played with the Western Sydney Academy in the S.G. Ball Cup before being signed by the Sydney Roosters.[7] He played for the Roosters' S.G. Ball team in 2011 and moved up to their NYC team in 2012 and 2013.[8] At the end of 2013, Asiata was named at lock in the 2013 NYC Team of the Year.[9] In November 2013, Asiata signed a 2-year contract with the North Queensland Cowboys starting in 2014, following his Roosters NYC coach, Paul Green, to the Cowboys.[10]

Playing career

2014

Asiata started the year playing for the Cowboys Queensland Cup affiliate, the Mackay Cutters. He would play 18 games for them in 2014, scoring 5 tries.

In Round 12 of the 2014 NRL season, Asiata made his NRL debut for the Cowboys against the Melbourne Storm off interchange bench in the Cowboys 22-0 win at 1300SMILES Stadium.[11][12] Asiata finished his debut year in the NRL with 6 matches for the Cowboys. On 14 October 2014, Asiata was named the Cowboys' Rookie of the Year at their annual Presentation Ball.[6]

2015

On 31 January and 1 February, Asiata played for the Cowboys in the 2015 NRL Auckland Nines.[13] On 27 April, he was named in Samoa's 18-man squad to face Tonga in the 2015 Polynesian Cup. He was the side's 18th man and did not partake in the match.[14] In Round 9, he made his first run on start in the NRL, in the Cowboys' 23-16 victory over the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.[15] On 21 May, he re-signed with the Cowboys on a 2-year contract to the end of the 2017 season.[16][17] On 4 October, in the Cowboys Queensland derby 2015 NRL Grand Final match against the Brisbane Broncos, Asiata played off the interchange bench in the Cowboys' historic golden-point 17-16 win.[18][19] He finished off his premiership winning 2015 season having played in 25 matches.[20]

2016

On 2 February, Asiata was named in the Cowboys' 2016 NRL Auckland Nines squad.[21] On 21 February, he was a member of the Cowboys' 2016 World Club Challenge winning side, coming off the bench in the side's 38-4 victory over the Leeds Rhinos at Headingley Stadium.[22]

Achievements and accolades

Individual

North Queensland Cowboys Rookie of the Year: 2014
NYC Team of the Year: 2013

Team

2015 NRL Grand Final: North Queensland Cowboys – Winners
2016 World Club Challenge: North Queensland Cowboys – Winners

Statistics

NRL

Statistics are correct to the end of the 2015 season[4]
† Denotes seasons in which Asiata won an NRL Premiership
Season Team Matches T G GK % F/G Pts
2014 North Queensland 6 0 0 — 0 0
2015† North Queensland 25 0 0 — 0 0
Career totals 31 0 0 — 0 0

References

  1. ↑ "Player statistics for Atalani Asiata - FOX SPORTS PULSE". Wangarattafc.vcfl.com.au. 2013-09-14. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  2. ↑ "2011 NSWRL JUNIOR REP'S TEAM LISTS". Ourfootyteam.com. 2009-05-28. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  3. ↑ "Cowboys ready to cover Origin stars". NRL.com. 2015-05-13. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  4. 1 2 "John Asiata - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  5. ↑ "2011 President's Teams - New South Wales Combined Catholic Colleges". Sportingpulse.com. 2011-07-17. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  6. 1 2 "John Asiata reflects on the role his father in helping him resurrect his rugby league career". Townsville Bulletin. 2014-10-14. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  7. ↑ "nswrl junior rep 2010 team lists, harold matthew's cup team lists, sg ball team lists". Ourfootyteam.com. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  8. ↑ https://web.archive.org/20130926015529/http://rleague.com/players/john-asiata_3676/Stats/. Archived from the original on 26 September 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2014. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ↑ "2013 Holden Cup Team of the Year". NRL.com. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  10. ↑ "Asiata joins Cowboys on NRL contract | NRL". Zero Tackle. 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  11. ↑ https://web.archive.org/20140531130646/http://www.cowboys.com.au/news/2014/05/31/team_lists_cowboys_v_storm.html. Archived from the original on 31 May 2014. Retrieved 31 May 2014. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  12. ↑ "Depleted Storm no match for Cowboys". NRL.com. 2014-05-31. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  13. ↑ "COWBOYS UNVEIL 2015 NINES SQUAD". Rugby League Week. 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  14. ↑ "Samoa Named To Face Tonga In Pacific Test". Rugby League Week. 2015-04-27. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  15. ↑ "Rugby League Tables / North Queensland 23 v Canterbury 16 / Round 9, 2015". Afltables.com. 2015-05-09. Retrieved 2015-12-25.
  16. ↑ "Asiata extends Cowboys' contract". Cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 2015-12-25.
  17. ↑ "Asiata re-signs with Cowboys". NRL.com. 2015-05-21. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  18. ↑ "NRL Grand Final 2015: North Queensland Cowboys outgun Brisbane Broncos to win premiership". Smh.com.au. Retrieved 2015-10-12.
  19. ↑ "NRL Grand Final Player Ratings". Dailytelegraph.com.au. Retrieved 2015-10-12.
  20. ↑ "Custom Match List". Rugby League Project. 2015-10-29. Retrieved 2015-12-25.
  21. ↑ "Cowboys name strong Nines squad". Rugby League Week. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
  22. ↑ "North Queensland Cowboys thump Leeds in World Club Challenge, James Tamou punched by Mitch Garbutt - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". Abc.net.au. Retrieved 2016-02-25.

External links

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