Atalani "John" Asiata (born 19 April 1993) is a professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who plays as a and for the

Leigh Leopards The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England, who compete in the Betfred Super League. The club was founded in 1878, and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern R ...

in the Betfred Super League and has played for both

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

and

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

at international level. He previously played for

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite c ...

and the

North Queensland Cowboys The North Queensland Cowboys is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest town in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Sinc ...

in the

National Rugby League The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...

, forming part of the Cowboys' 2015 NRL Grand Final and 2016 World Club Challenge winning sides.

Background

Asiata was born in

Penrith, New South Wales Penrith is a city in New South Wales, Australia, located in Greater Western Sydney, 55 kilometres (31 mi) west of the Sydney central business district on the banks of the Nepean River, on the outskirts of the Cumberland Plain. Its eleva ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

to a Samoan father and a Tongan mother. He played his junior football for the

Wentworthville Magpies The Wentworthville Magpies, colloquially known as ''Wenty'', are a rugby league team based in the suburb of Wentworthville in Sydney's Western Suburbs. Founded in 1963 (or 1937), the club has competed in various Sydney district competitions an ...

and attended

Patrician Brothers' College, Blacktown Patrician Brothers' College, Blacktown is a Roman Catholic single-sex secondary day school for boys, located in Blacktown, a western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. History The College was founded in 1952 by the Patrician Brot ...

Playing career

In 2009, Asiata was a member of the

Parramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta that competes in the National Rugby League. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and their ...

side that finished runners-up in the Harold Matthews Cup. In 2010, he played with the Western Sydney Academy in the S.G. Ball Cup before being signed by the

Sydney Roosters The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...

. He played for the Roosters' S.G. Ball team in 2011 and played for their National Youth Competition (NYC) team in 2012 and 2013. At the end of 2013, Asiata was named at lock in the 2013 NYC team of the year. In November 2013 Asiata signed a two-year contract with the

, starting in 2014, following his

NYC coach, Paul Green, to the North Queensland outfit.

2014

Asiata started the year playing for the North Queensland

Queensland Cup The Queensland Cup, currently known as the Hostplus Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the highest-level regional rugby league football competition in Queensland, Australia. It is run by the Queensland Rugby League (QRL) and is contested by fou ...

affiliate, the

Mackay Cutters The Mackay Cutters are a semi-professional rugby league football club based in Mackay, Queensland. They compete in Queensland's top rugby league competition, the Queensland Cup. The club was admitted to the Queensland Cup in 2007, alongside t ...

. He would play 18 games for them in 2014, scoring five tries. In round 12 of the

2014 NRL season The 2014 NRL season was the 107th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 17th season of the National Rugby League in Australia and New Zealand. The season started in New Zealand, for the Auckland Nines, replacing the Rugby Lea ...

, Asiata made his debut for the North Queensland club, against the

Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm are a rugby league club based in Melbourne, Victoria in Australia that participates in the National Rugby League. The first fully professional rugby league team based in the state, the Storm entered the competition in 1998. ...

, off interchange bench in their 22–0 win at 1300SMILES Stadium. 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.

2015

On 31 January and 1 February, Asiata played for North Queensland's in the

2015 NRL Auckland Nines The 2015 NRL Auckland Nines (known as the Dick Smith NRL Auckland Nines due to sponsorship) was the second NRL Auckland Nines tournament, contested between all sixteen teams of the National Rugby League. The draw was released on 16 September 201 ...

. On 27 April, he was named in Samoa's 18-man squad to face

in the 2015 Polynesian Cup. He was the side's 18th man and did not participate in the match. In round 9, he made his first start in the NRL, in North Queensland's 23–16 victory over the

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilit ...

. On 21 May, he re-signed with North Queensland on a two-year contract until the end of the

2017 NRL season The 2017 NRL season was the 110th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 20th season run by the National Rugby League. The season started in New Zealand with the annual Auckland Nines, and was followed by the All Stars Match, w ...

. On 4 October, in the 2015 NRL Grand Final against the

, Asiata played off the interchange bench in the clubs golden-point 17–16 win. He finished off his premiership winning 2015 season having played in 25 matches.

2016

On 2 February, Asiata was named in North Queensland's

2016 NRL Auckland Nines The 2016 NRL Auckland Nines (known as the Downer NRL Auckland Nines due to sponsorship) was the third NRL Auckland Nines competition. It was held on 6–7 February 2016 at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand. As with previous tournaments, it was ...

squad. 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

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

Headingley Stadium Headingley Stadium is a stadium complex in Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, comprising two separate grounds; Headingley Cricket Ground and Headingley Rugby Stadium, linked by a two-sided stand housing common facilities. The ground ...

. On 7 May, he made his international debut for Samoa against Tonga in the 2016 Polynesian Cup. Asiata played 19 games in 2016, which included his third career start, against the

Canberra Raiders The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby ...

in Round 18.

2017

In Round 7 of the

, Asiata started at halfback against the St. George Illawarra Dragons, replacing the injured

Johnathan Thurston Johnathan Dean Thurston (born 25 April 1983) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the National Rugby League (NRL). Thurston was an Australian international, Queensland State of Origin and Indigenous All ...

. In the 26–20 loss, Asiata finished the game with two try-assists and two line-break assists. On 16 May, he re-signed with the North Queensland club until the end of the

2020 NRL season The 2020 NRL season was the 113th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 23rd season run by the National Rugby League. Teams The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 14th consecutive year. ; Notes : : : Pre-seaso ...

. In North Queensland's semi-final win over the

, his 76th NRL game, Asiata scored his first ever NRL try. On 1 October, he played off the interchange bench in North Queensland's

2017 NRL Grand Final The 2017 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2017 National Rugby League season and was played on Sunday October 1 at Sydney's ANZ Stadium. The match was contested between minor premiers the Melbourne Storm a ...

loss to the

. Asiata finished the 2017 season playing in all 28 games for the club.

2018

After playing in the first seven games of the

2018 NRL season The 2018 NRL season was the 111th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 21st season run by the National Rugby League. The main competition, known as the 2018 Telstra Premiership due to sponsorship from Telstra, featured 16 team ...

, Asiata suffered a pectoral tear in North Queensland's 26–14 win over the

Gold Coast Titans The Gold Coast Titans are a professional rugby league football club, based on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australia and New Zealand's national rugby league club competition. The ...

, which saw him miss 11 weeks. He returned for the side's Round 18 game against

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

and played the last eight games of the season. Due to the injury, he finished the season with just 15 games played (starting four of them), his lowest total since his rookie season.

2019

Asiata played in all 24 games for North Queensland in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

, scoring three tries, his highest single-season try tally. Due to injuries, he spent considerable time in the halves once again, starting 11 games at five-eighth and one at halfback. In Round 7, he played his 100th NRL game in the sides 12–24 loss to the

. On 22 June, he made his debut for

, starting at five-eighth in their 14–34 loss to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

2020

Asiata played in the first four games of the season for North Queensland before suffering a knee injury in a 16–26 loss to the

Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales. They compete in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australasia's premier rugby leag ...

, ruling him out for eight weeks. He returned in the clubs

Round 12 Round or rounds may refer to: Mathematics and science * The contour of a closed curve or surface with no sharp corners, such as an ellipse, circle, rounded rectangle, cant, or sphere * Rounding, the shortening of a number to reduce the num ...

loss to the

. In Round 18, Asiata was charged with dangerous contact and was suspended for one game. On 24 September, North Queensland announced that Asiata would leave the club at the end of the season. In Round 20, he played his final game for North Queensland, a 32–16 win over the

. On 3 October, he won the Cowboys' Club Person of the Year award for the second time. In November 2020, Asiata signed a one-year deal with the

2021

On 16 September, Asiata signed a one-year deal with the

commencing in 2022. However the contract was terminated on 7 December for his continual refusal to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. On 15 December it was announced that Asiata had signed for English

Betfred Championship The Championship, known as the Betfred Championship for sponsorship reasons, is a professional rugby league competition. It is the second-tier competition organised by the Rugby Football League, the governing body for the sport in England, ...

side

Leigh Centurions The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England, who compete in the Betfred Super League. The club was founded in 1878, and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern R ...

2022

In round 1 of the 2022 Championship season, Asiata made his club debut for

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staff ...

in their 50–4 victory over

Whitehaven R.L.F.C. Whitehaven 2010 R.L.F.C. is a professional rugby league club playing in Whitehaven in west Cumbria. They play in Betfred Championship after winning Betfred League 1 in 2019. Their stadium is called the Recreation Ground (known locally as the ...

On 28 May 2022, Asiata played for Leigh in their 2022 RFL 1895 Cup final victory over

Featherstone Featherstone is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, two miles south-west of Pontefract. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in 2011 it had a population of 15,244. Featherstone railway stat ...

. On 3 October 2022, Asiata played for Leigh in their Million Pound Game victory over

Batley Batley is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. Batley lies south-west of Leeds, north-west of Wakefield and Dewsbury, south-east of Bradford and north-east of Huddersfield. Batley is part of the ...

which saw the club promoted back to the

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of w ...

Achievements and accolades

Individual

* North Queensland Cowboys Club Person of the Year: 2016, 2020 * North Queensland Cowboys Rookie of the Year: 2014 * NYC Team of the Year: 2013

Team

* 2015 NRL Grand Final:

– Winners * 2016 World Club Challenge:

– Winners

Statistics

NRL

: ''Statistics are correct to the end of the 2020 season''

International

Personal life

Asiata and his wife, Shailah, have two children: a daughter, Eleana, and a son, John Junior. John and his family are of the Christian Faith.

References

External links

Brisbane Broncos profileNorth Queensland Cowboys profileNRL profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asiata, John 1993 births Living people Australian sportspeople of Samoan descent Australian sportspeople of Tongan descent Australian expatriate sportspeople in England Australian rugby league players Brisbane Broncos players Leigh Leopards captains Leigh Leopards players Mackay Cutters players North Queensland Cowboys players Rugby league players from Penrith, New South Wales Rugby league props Samoa national rugby league team players Tonga national rugby league team players Wentworthville Magpies players