

Eliesa Katoa
2nd Row
Player Bio
- Height:
- 193 cm
- Date of Birth:
- 03 January 2000
- Weight:
- 110 kg
- Birthplace:
- Hihifo, Tonga
- Age:
- 22
- Nickname:
- Eli
- Debut Club:
- New Zealand Warriors
- Date:
- 14 March 2020
- Opposition:
- Newcastle Knights
- Round:
- 1
- Previous Club:
- Nil
- Junior Club:
- Tamaki College First XV (rugby union)
- Biography:
Eliesa - or 'Eli' as he is more commonly called - blasted onto the NRL scene last year making a huge impression the moment he made his debut against Newcastle in the first round.
Injury restricted him to 13 appearances but he was an intimidating presence on the edge, scoring six tries, bending the line consistently, averaging just on 100 metres and proving he had the capacity to play big minutes.
Eli joined the Vodafone Warriors after making his mark in rugby union for the Tamaki College First XV in Auckland's elite competition.
Born and raised in Tonga, Katoa had visited New Zealand with three Tonga national age group teams before Tamaki College brought him to Auckland on a scholarship in 2017.
At 193cm and more than 100kg, he was an imposing figure on the First XV scene, catching the eye of many scouts including the Vodafone Warriors.
Signed on a development contract, Eli trained with the club's NRL squad during the 2018-2019 off season but injury disrupted his progress.
It wasn't until the 12th round that he was selected for his Jersey Flegg Cup (under 20) debut against Cronulla in 2019.
Family is the driving force behind his sporting career, above all the memory of his father who died when Eli was only 12.
Career
- Appearances
- 40
- Tries
- 8
2022 Season
- Appearances
- 9
Scoring
- Tries
- 1
Attack
- Line Breaks
- 1
- Line Break Assists
- 0
Passing
- Offloads
- 4
Defence
- Tackles Made
- 211
- Tackle Efficiency
-
Running Metres
- Average Running Metres
- 70
- Total Running Metres
- 633
Fantasy
- Total Points
- 284
- Average Points
- 31.6
2022 Season - By Round
Round | Opponent | Score | Position | Minutes Played | Tries | Goals | Points | Try Assists | Linebreaks | Tackle Breaks | Post Contact Metres | Offloads | Receipts | Tackles Made | Missed Tackles | Total Running Metres | Hit Up Running Metres | Kick Return Metres | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Dragons | Lost | 16 - 28 | 2nd Row | 73 | 1 | - | 4 | - | 1 | 3 | 48 | 1 | 14 | 31 | 1 | 114 | 107 | - |
2 | Titans | Lost | 20 - 18 | 2nd Row | 64 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 51 | - | 13 | 33 | 2 | 120 | 120 | - |
3 | Wests Tigers | Won | 12 - 16 | 2nd Row | 30 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 22 | - | 5 | 11 | 1 | 46 | 46 | - |
4 | Broncos | Won | 20 - 6 | Interchange | 19 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 27 | - | 6 | 16 | 2 | 50 | 50 | - |
5 | Cowboys | Won | 25 - 24 | Replacement | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
6 | Roosters | Lost | 22 - 14 | Interchange | 32 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 21 | 1 | 7 | 28 | 2 | 40 | 40 | - |
8 | Raiders | Won | 21 - 20 | Interchange | 37 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 37 | 2 | 12 | 19 | 1 | 78 | 65 | 12 |
9 | Sharks | Lost | 29 - 10 | 2nd Row | 64 | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 46 | - | 12 | 33 | - | 90 | 85 | 5 |
10 | Rabbitohs | Lost | 30 - 32 | 2nd Row | 55 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 36 | - | 9 | 31 | 1 | 72 | 72 | - |
11 | Dragons | Lost | 24 - 18 | Interchange | 15 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 | - | 3 | 9 | - | 19 | 19 | - |
Career By Season
Year | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % | Tries | Goals | Points | Kicking Metres | Kicking Metres Average | Linebreaks | Offloads | Tackles Made | Missed Tackles | Total Running Metres | Average Running Metres | Kick Return Metres | Total Points | Average Points | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Warriors | 2020 | 13 | 6 | 7 | - | 46% | 6 | - | 24 | - | - | 3 | 16 | 354 | 31 | 1,292 | 99.00 | 12 | 581 | 44.7 |
Warriors | 2021 | 18 | 6 | 12 | - | 33% | 1 | - | 4 | 20 | 1.14 | 2 | 16 | 451 | 42 | 1,262 | 70.00 | 15 | 596 | 33.1 |
Warriors | 2022 | 9 | 3 | 6 | - | 33% | 1 | - | 4 | - | - | 1 | 4 | 211 | 10 | 633 | 70.00 | 18 | 284 | 31.6 |
Career Overall
Year Start | Year End | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % | Tries | Goals | Points | Kicking Metres | Kicking Metres Average | Linebreaks | Offloads | Tackles Made | Missed Tackles | Total Running Metres | Average Running Metres | Kick Return Metres | Total Points | Average Points | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Warriors | 2020 | 2022 | 40 | 15 | 25 | - | 38% | 8 | - | 32 | 20 | 0.50 | 6 | 36 | 1,016 | 83 | 3,187 | 77.00 | 45 | 1,461 | 36.5 |
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Team Mates

The New Zealand Warriors honour the mana of the Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa, Australia and the Pacific. We acknowledge the traditional kaitiaki of the lands, elders past and present, their stories, their traditions, their mamae and their mana motuhake.