Marika Koroibete
| Personal information | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 26 June 1992 Navaiyawa, Fiji | |||||
| Height | 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) | |||||
| Weight | 93 kg (14 st 9 lb) | |||||
| Playing information | ||||||
| Position | Wing | |||||
| Club | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| 2012– | Wests Tigers | 15 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 48 |
| Representative | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| 2013 | Fiji | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| As of 8 September 2013 | ||||||
| Source: RLP League Central | ||||||
Marika Koroibete (born 26 July 1992) is a Fijian professional rugby league footballer for the Wests Tigers of the National Rugby League. He primarily plays wing and fullback.
Playing career
Born in Navaiyawa, Fiji, Koroibete grew upon a family farm from which he walked twenty kilometres to travel to and from school.[1] He played his junior football for his school in Fiji before signing a 3-year contract with the Wests Tigers. He was signed after being spotted playing for the Fiji Under 19s in a match against Australian-born Fijian players.[1] At around the same time he was considered a possibility for a career in sprinting, having run 100 metres in 10.75 seconds.
Koroibete played for the Tigers' Toyota Cup team in 2011 and 2012, scoring 22 tries in 26 games.[2] He scored two tries as the team won the 2012 Grand Final.[3] 2012 Toyota Cup coach Todd Payten said, "The most exciting part with Marika is that we're only really scratching the surface. He's got a couple of little issues and once we iron them out, he's certainly going to be a crowd pleaser."[1]
In Round 21 of the 2012 NRL season, Koroibete made his NRL debut for the Tigers against the South Sydney Rabbitohs.[4] In just his second game, Koroibete scored 4 tries against the Parramatta Eels, equalling the club record for most tries in a match set by Kevin McGuinness ten years earlier. He followed this up with 2 tries against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs a fortnight later. Coach Tim Sheens described him as having, "lots of issues still but he's got raw pace and ability."[5]
On 21 August 2012, Koroibete was named at wing in the 2012 Toyota Cup Team of the Year.[6] He was also named the joint Rookie of the Year for the Wests Tigers,[7] and one of the top ten upcoming youngsters in the NRL in Lifestyle Uncut Magazine.[8]
A number of injuries, including a fractured eye-socket and a dislocated elbow, saw Koroibete play in just 9 games in 2013. However, he scored 5 tries and was averaging over three tackle breaks and 100 metres with the ball per game.[9]
Representative career
Koroibete has played for the Fiji Under 19's.
He was selected as part of the Fiji squad for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup. [10]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Michael Chammas (8 August 2012). "From farm to fortune: quiet Koroibete is flying fast". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ↑ "Grandstand Forums". rleague.com. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- ↑ Wayne Cousins (30 September 2013). "Wests Tigers win NYC Premiership". weststigers.com.au. Retrieved 11 September 2013.
- ↑ "Incredible journey gets even bigger for flying Fijian Marika Koroibete - Tigers". Weststigers.com.au. 29 July 2012. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- ↑ Michael Chammas (7 August 2012). "Bolt from the blue: Fijian flash's four a club record". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ↑ (21 August 2012). "Toyota Cup Team of the Year". NRL.com. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- ↑ Wayne Cousins (28 September 2012). "Aaron Woods named Player of the Year". weststigers.com.au. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ↑ Chris Taylor (23 September 2012). "The Top 10 Youngsters From The NRL You'd Like To See In Super League". Lifestyleuncut.com. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- ↑ Brock Corfe (25 August 2013). "Young guns - Marika Koroibete". weststigers.com.au. Retrieved 11 September 2013.
- ↑ http://fijilive.com/sports/news/2013/09/civoniceva-wes-naiqama-to-lead-fiji-bati/32752.Fijilive
External links
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