Wikipedia

Jazz Tevaga

Jazz Iosefa Tevaga (born 4 September 1995) is a Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a lock and hooker for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League (NRL).

Jazz Tevaga
Personal information
Full nameJazz Iosefa Tevaga
Born (1995-09-04) 4 September 1995 (age 29)
Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand
Height178 cm (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Weight98 kg (15 st 6 lb)
Playing information
PositionLock, Hooker, Prop
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2016–24 New Zealand Warriors 138 9 0 0 36
2025– Manly Sea Eagles 0 0 0 0 0
Total 138 9 0 0 36
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2017–24 Samoa 6 1 0 0 4
2022–24 Māori All Stars 2 0 0 0 0
Source: [2]
As of 31 August 2024

Early years

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Tevaga was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, and is of Samoan, Maori and European descent.[3]

Tevaga played his junior football for the Burnham Chevaliers in Christchurch and Papakura Sea Eagles in Auckland and he attended Papakura High School, where he played in the 2013 National Secondary School championship and was selected for the tournament team.[4]

Playing career

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Holden Cup

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In January 2014, Tevaga attended a Junior Warriors training camp as an open trialist before being signed by the New Zealand Warriors, and playing in the Holden Cup. On 5 October 2014, Tevaga played at lock in the Warriors 2014 Holden Cup grand final winning team who beat the Brisbane Broncos 34-32.[5] In 2015 he played both for the Junior Warriors (where he was co-captain) and in the NSW Cup.[6] On 2 May 2015, Tevaga played for the Junior Kiwis against the Junior Kangaroos, starting at lock in the 22-20 loss at Cbus Super Stadium.[7][8]

Originally a lock, Tevaga was converted to a hooker during the 2014 season as he was considered too small for the lock position.

2016

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In Round 3 of the 2016 NRL season, Tevaga made his debut for the New Zealand Warriors against the Melbourne Storm as a replacement for an injured Issac Luke in the Warriors 21-14 loss at Mt Smart Stadium.[9][10] Tevaga became Warrior #209, and played 59 minutes due to an injury to bench hooker Nathaniel Roache.[11]

2017

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He played just 4 NRL games for the Warriors in 2017.

He represented Samoa in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup and played all four games as the starting hooker, scoring a try in their loss to Tonga.[12]

2018

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In 2018 he cemented a position as a bench hooker for the Warriors, filling in for the starting 9 Issac Luke. He appeared in 20 games, 19 of which from the bench. His performance as a specialist bench player was rewarded at the 2018 Dally M Awards when he was given the first Interchange Player Of The Year award.[13]

2019

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Tevaga made 22 appearances for New Zealand in the 2019 NRL season as the club missed out on the finals.[14]

2020

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Tevaga made 12 appearances for New Zealand in the 2020 NRL season as the club once again missed out on the finals.[15]

2021

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In the final round of the 2021 NRL season, Tevaga was sent to the sin bin for fighting in the club's 44-0 loss against the Gold Coast.[16]

2022

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Tevaga made a total of 17 appearances for the New Zealand club in the 2022 NRL season as they finished 15th on the table.[17]

2023

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Tevaga played eleven games for the New Zealand Warriors in the 2023 NRL season as the club finished 4th on the table and qualified for the finals. He played in all three finals games as the club reached the preliminary final before being defeated by Brisbane.[18]

2024

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On 1 August 2024, it was announced that Tevaga would be leaving the New Zealand Warriors at the end of the season.[19] He made 19 appearances for the New Zealand Warriors in the 2024 NRL season which saw the club finish 13th on the table.[20] On 11 October 2024, Tevaga signed with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles for the 2025 season.[21]

References

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  1. ^ "Jazz Tevaga". nrl.com. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  2. ^ Jazz Tevaga rugbyleagueproject.org
  3. ^ "Jazz Tevaga #JuniorWarriors #Samoan #Maori #Leulumoega #Leauvaa #Tainui #NgatiPorou". igPile.
  4. ^ Tevaga wins place in tournament squad Papakura Courier, 11 September 2013
  5. ^ "Warriors survive Broncos scare to win Holden Cup". NRL - The official site of the National Rugby League - NRL.com. 5 October 2014.
  6. ^ "Tevaga to debut". New Zealand Warriors. 20 March 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  7. ^ "2015 Junior Kiwis Named". Rugby League Week.
  8. ^ David Long (2 May 2015). "Junior Kangaroos edge Junior Kiwis by two in thriller on Gold Coast". Stuff.
  9. ^ David Long (20 March 2016). "Storm coach Craig Bellamy feeling for Andrew McFadden after Warriors lose". Stuff.
  10. ^ "Melbourne Storm beat New Zealand Warriors for third NRL win". The Sydney Morning Herald. 20 March 2016.
  11. ^ "Warriors v Storm: Five key points". NRL. 20 March 2016.
  12. ^ "Tonga down Samoa to set up NZ blockbuster". news.com.au. 4 November 2017.
  13. ^ "Tevaga wins Dally M interchange award". 26 September 2018.
  14. ^ "New Zealand Warriors NRL finals hopes over after thrashing at hands of Sydney Roosters". www.nzherald.co.nz.
  15. ^ "Warriors to make finals in 2021". www.nrl.com. December 2020.
  16. ^ "Gold Coast Titans beat Warriors 44-0 to clinch NRL finals berth, Canterbury defeats Wests Tigers 38-0". www.abc.net.au.
  17. ^ "Warriors farewell 15 players after return to New Zealand". www.foxsports.com.au.
  18. ^ "NRL 2023: New Zealand Warriors season review". www.sportingnews.com.
  19. ^ "Tevaga to farewell club at end of 2024 season". Warriors. 31 July 2024. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  20. ^ "The Mole's end-of-season review: The 'harsh' Shaun Johnson truth that plagued highly-fancied Warriors". www.nine.com.au.
  21. ^ Staff, Writer (10 October 2024). "Jazz Tevaga brings experience and grit to Sea Eagles". Manly Warringah Sea Eagles. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
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