Nathanael "Simi" Sasagi (born 24 April 2001) is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League (NRL).
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Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Nathanael Sasagi[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 24 April 2001 Auckland, New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 94 kg (14 st 11 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Second-row, Centre | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [2] As of 1 June 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
He previously played for the Newcastle Knights as a centre.
Background
Sasagi was born in Auckland, New Zealand. He is of Samoan descent.[3]
He played his junior rugby league for the Ellerslie Eagles, before being signed by the Newcastle Knights.
Playing career
Early years
Sasagi started his career at the Knights playing with their S. G. Ball Cup team in 2018,[4] before re-signing with the club on a contract until the end of 2020, with an option for a further two seasons after that.[5] In 2019 and 2020, he trained with the first-grade squad as a development player,[6] but only played two games for the Knights' Jersey Flegg Cup side in that time after being hampered by injury.[4][7] He was named in the Junior Kiwis squad in September 2019.[8]
2021
In 2021, Sasagi was promoted to the top 30 squad and spent his time playing with the NSW Cup side.[9][10] He made his NRL debut for Newcastle against North Queensland in round 11 of the 2021 NRL season,[11] playing in the centres as Newcastle were defeated 20–36.[12]
2022
Sasagi played 14 games for Newcastle in the 2022 NRL season which saw the club missing the finals finishing 14th on the table.[13]
2023
In August, Sasagi signed a 2-year contract with the Canberra Raiders starting in 2024, after gaining a release from the remainder of his Knights contract.[14][15]