Jerome Ropati (born 23 November 1984) is a New Zealand former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who played his entire career for the

New Zealand Warriors The Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as the Aucklan ...

in the

National Rugby League The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

(NRL). Ropati also represented

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and was a member of the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

-winning team in 2008. He played as a , and occasionally as a and .

Background

Ropati was born in

Auckland, New Zealand Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

Early years

Ropati is of Samoan descent and was educated at St Paul's College, a school noted for its rugby league teams. Jerome Ropati's parents are Filipo and Rosa Ropati. He is no relation to the famous Ropati rugby league family.

Playing career

Ropati's junior club was the

Marist Saints The Marist Saints is a rugby league club based in Mount Albert, New Zealand. They currently compete in the top grade in Auckland Rugby League, the Fox Memorial Premiership. History Founded in 1919, the Marist club first won the Fox Memorial in 1 ...

and he played for the Marist Richmond Brothers in the

Bartercard Cup The Bartercard Cup (successor of the Lion Red Cup) was the top level rugby league club competition in New Zealand from 2000 until 2007. For the entire life of the tournament it was sponsored by Bartercard. The cup was administered by the New Ze ...

. It was his 2003 season in the Bartercard Cup that shot him to prominence, as he enjoyed a stellar season and led the club to the grand final. He missed the grand final, which the Brothers lost, because he was making his

NRL The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

debut for the

Warriors A warrior is a guardian specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracy, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have been p ...

. In 2002 Ropati was named captain of the

Junior Kiwis The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. Since 2010, they are an under-20s side, with players selected from the NRL, Intrust Sup ...

squad which played two games against touring Australian sides.

Warriors

He made his

first grade First grade (also 1st Grade or Grade 1) is the first year of formal or compulsory education. It is the first year of elementary school, and the first school year after kindergarten. Children in first grade are usually 6–7 years old. Examples ...

debut for the Warriors in round 25 of the 2003 season against the

Sydney Roosters Eastern Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club, known as the Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Eastern Suburbs. The club competes in the National Rugby Lea ...

. When not selected for the first grade side, Ropati represented the

Auckland Lions The Auckland Lions were a rugby league club that had teams in both the New Zealand Bartercard Cup and the NSWRL Premier League. They were mostly drawn from the Mt Albert Lions Rugby League club. Mt Albert had a proud tradition in Auckland and had ...

in both the

and

NSWRL Premier League The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve ...

. He was one of four players who played in every game for the Warriors in 2007. He made his debut for the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team () has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the Kiwi (bird), native bird of that name. The team' ...

in 2005 against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and was involved in the 2006 Tri Nations. He was a member of the 2008 World Cup winning Kiwis team, that defeated Australia in the Final, with Ropati scoring a try in the match. In 2009 he extended his Warriors career until the 2012 season, becoming a 10-year Warrior. His 2011 season was ruined by injury as he tore his

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. In ...

(ACL) in round 3. He retired during the 2014 season, following another injury.

Later years

After retirement, Ropati stayed working for the Warriors, becoming a community ambassador. For the 2017 season, Ropati was appointed an assistant coach to the club's

Intrust Super Premiership NSW The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve ...

side. In 2018 he put the boots back on and has turned out for the Bay Roskill Vikings in the Sharman Cup, helping them to the Phelan Shield in an unbeaten regular season.

References

External links

Jerome Ropati Official Player Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ropati, Jerome 1984 births Living people 21st-century New Zealand sportsmen Auckland rugby league team players Junior Kiwis players Marist Richmond Brothers players Marist Saints players New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand sportspeople of Samoan descent New Zealand Warriors coaches New Zealand Warriors players People educated at St Paul's College, Auckland Rugby league centres Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league players from Auckland