Marcelo Montoya
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Marcelo Eduardo Montoya Jr (born 17 February 1996) is a Fijian 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 plays as a er or for the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...
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 ...
and
Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
at international level. He previously played 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 NRL.


Background

Montoya was born in
Lautoka, Fiji Lautoka (, ) is the second largest List of cities and towns in Fiji#List, metropolitan area in Fiji. It is on the west coast of the island of Viti Levu, in the Ba Province of the Western Division, Fiji, Western Division. Lying in the heart of ...
to a Chilean father and Fijian mother, and moved to
Campbelltown, New South Wales Campbelltown is a suburb located on the outskirts of the metropolitan area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located in Greater Western Sydney south-west of the Sydney central business district by road. Campbelltown is the adminis ...
,
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 ...
at the age of three. He played his junior rugby league for the Bankstown Bulls, and attended both
Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield (abbreviated as PBCF) is an independent Roman Catholic comprehensive single-sex secondary day school for boys, located in Fairfield, a western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded ...
and Patrician Brothers' College, Blacktown.


Playing career


Early career

Montoya was signed by the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...
and played in their
Harold Matthews Cup The NSWRL Harold Matthews Cup is a junior rugby league competition played in New South Wales between teams made up of players aged under 17. The competition is administered by the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL). The competition is made up ...
team. He progressed through Canterbury's youth system, and played in their NYC team between 2014 and 2016, scoring 36 tries in 46 matches. The captain of the NYC team in 2016, he also played seven games in Canterbury's
New South Wales Cup 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 ...
team that year, scoring six tries. On 8 October 2016, Montoya made his international debut for Fiji in an
international International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...
against
Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...
in
Apia Apia () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Samoa. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. The Apia Urban A ...
, playing on the wing and scoring a try in Fiji's 20–18 win.


2017

In February 2017, Montoya was named in Canterbury's
2017 NRL Auckland Nines The 2017 NRL Auckland Nines (known as the Downer NRL Auckland Nines due to sponsorship) was the fourth NRL Auckland Nines competition. It was held on 4–5 February 2017 at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand. Just like previous tournaments, it ...
squad. In round 3 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, ...
, Montoya made his NRL debut for the Bulldogs against 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 ...
where he played on the wing and scored a try in the 24–12 win at
Forsyth Barr Stadium Forsyth Barr Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Dunedin, New Zealand. At various stages of development it was also known as Dunedin Stadium or Awatea Street Stadium, or its non-commercial official name during the 2011 Rugby World Cup and 2 ...
in Dunedin, New Zealand. He is the first player of Chilean and South American descent to play in the NRL. He scored his first career double against the
Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league team based in Newcastle, New South Wales that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, the Knights joined the top-tier competition in New ...
on the 7th April 2017 in a 22 points to 12 win. On 6 June, Montoya re-signed with the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...
for a further three seasons until the end of 2020. After a successful opening season in Montoya's career, the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...
named him the
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 ...
Rookie of the year.


2018

In 2018, Montoya made 15 appearances for Canterbury and scored two tries. In September 2018, Montoya and other Canterbury players celebrated Mad Monday at The
Harbour View Hotel Harbour View Hotel is a heritage-listed hotel at 18 Lower Fort Street, in the inner city Sydney suburb of Millers Point, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Prevost & Waterman and built from 1922 to 1923. It is privately owned. It w ...
in Sydney's CBD. Later in the night, photographs provided by the media showed Canterbury players heavily intoxicated, stripping naked and vomiting in the street. Montoya was pictured on the street asleep by photographers after vomiting earlier. Montoya was handed a fine of $10,000 ($5000 suspended) by the club for his involvement.


2019

Montoya played the first two games of the 2019 season at centre as Canterbury suffered back to back heavy defeats against 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 ...
and 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 (NRL). The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and ...
. Montoya was subsequently one of five players demoted to reserve grade by coach
Dean Pay Dean Pay (born 3 June 1969) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and former head coach of the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the National Rugby League (NRL), a professional player who played in the late 1980s and 1990s ...
. After spending 7 weeks in reserve grade, Montoya was recalled to the Canterbury side for their Round 9 match against the
Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league team based in Newcastle, New South Wales that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, the Knights joined the top-tier competition in New ...
which Canterbury lost 22–10 at
Suncorp Stadium Brisbane Stadium (Lang Park), currently known as Suncorp Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in the suburb of Milton, Queensland, Milton, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Nicknamed The Cauldron, it is a three-tiered rect ...
. In Round 18 against Brisbane, Montoya was taken from the field during the club's 28–6 loss with an apparent leg injury. Scans later revealed that Montoya would be ruled out for the rest of the season after it was shown he had tears to his posterior cruciate ligament, lateral ligament and medial meniscal ligament.


2020

Montoya made his return for Canterbury in round 8 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-season ...
, scoring a try in a 26–10 loss against Souths. In round 10 against St. George and with the scores locked at 22-22, Canterbury spread the ball left and a routine pass was thrown to Montoya who in turn dropped the ball. Saints player Corey Norman picked up the loose ball and raced away to score the match winning try on the full-time siren. On 22 September, it was revealed that Montoya would be released by Canterbury at 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-season ...
. Montoya was one of eight players who were released as the club looked to rebuild for the 2021 season.


2021

In round 4 of the
2021 NRL season The 2021 NRL season was the 114th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 24th season run by the National Rugby League. Teams The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 15th consecutive year. Regular season Ladd ...
, Montoya made his club debut 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 ...
. In round 11 of the
2021 NRL season The 2021 NRL season was the 114th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 24th season run by the National Rugby League. Teams The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 15th consecutive year. Regular season Ladd ...
, Montoya scored two tries in a 30–26 victory over the
Wests Tigers The Wests Tigers is an Australian professional rugby league football team, based in the Inner West of Sydney and South Western Sydney. The Tigers have competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) since being formed at the end of the 1999 N ...
.


2022

In round 5 of the
2022 NRL season The 2022 NRL season was the 115th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 25th season run by the National Rugby League. Teams The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 16th consecutive year. This became the second longest ...
, Montoya used a homophobic slur against
North Queensland North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its Tropical North Queensland, trop ...
winger Kyle Feldt in a match between their sides. The comment was picked up by in-game audio. Montoya was referred to the NRL judiciary and entered an early guilty plea. He was suspended for four matches. In round 10, Montoya scored two tries for New Zealand in their 32–30 loss against South Sydney. Montoya made a total of 18 appearances for the New Zealand club as they finished 15th on the table.


2023

In round 3 of the
2023 NRL season The 2023 NRL season was the 116th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 26th season run by the National Rugby League. The season consisted of 27 competition rounds, the longest in league history, followed by a finals series ...
, Montoya scored two tries for New Zealand in a 26–12 victory over
North Queensland North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its Tropical North Queensland, trop ...
. In round 19, Montoya scored two tries for New Zealand in their 46-10 victory over Parramatta Eels. Montoya played 27 games for the New Zealand Warriors in the 2023 NRL season and scored eleven tries as the club finished 4th on the table and qualified for the finals. Montoya played in all three finals games as the club reached the preliminary final before being defeated by Brisbane.


2024

Montoya played 19 games for the New Zealand Warriors in the
2024 NRL season The 2024 NRL season was the 117th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 27th season run by the National Rugby League (NRL). The season consisted of 27 competition rounds, followed by a finals series contested by the top eight ...
and scored eight tries which saw the club finish 13th on the table. On 11 October 2024, the Warriors announced that Montoya had been released from his contract to return to Australia. The same day Montoya had re-joined the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...
in a two year deal.


Statistics

*denotes season competing


Personal life

As of May 2015, Montoya is working as a teacher's aide at
Casula Casula () is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 34 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Liverpool. Casula is the first suburb immediately ...
Public School. He has been an ambassador for Latin Heat Rugby League.


References


External links


Canterbury Bulldogs profileNRL profile2017 RLWC profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montoya, Marcelo 1996 births Living people 21st-century Fijian sportsmen Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs players Fijian people of Chilean descent Fijian emigrants to Australia Fijian rugby league players Fiji national rugby league team players New Zealand Warriors players People educated at Patrician Brothers' College, Blacktown People educated at Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league players from Lautoka Rugby league wingers Sportspeople of Chilean descent