Nathanael "Simi" Sasagi (born 24 April 2001) is a Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League.
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Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Nathanael Sasagi[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 24 April 2001 Auckland, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 184 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 102 kg (16 st 1 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre, Second-row | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [2] As of 2 June 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
He previously played for the Newcastle Knights as a centre.
Background
editSasagi 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
editEarly years
editSasagi 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
editIn 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
editSasagi played 14 games for Newcastle in the 2022 NRL season which saw the club missing the finals finishing 14th on the table.[13]
2023
editIn August, Sasagi signed a two-year contract with the Canberra Raiders starting in 2024, after gaining a release from the remainder of his Newcastle contract.[14][15]
2024
editSasagi played ten matches for Canberra in the 2024 NRL season as the club finished 9th on the table.[16]
2025
editOn 13 March, Sasagi signed a one-year extension with Canberra.[17] On 20 August, Canberra announced that Sasagi had penned another extension with the club until the end of 2028.[18] Sasagi played 22 matches for Canberra in the 2025 NRL season as the club claimed the Minor Premiership. He played in both finals matches as Canberra went out in straight sets losing to both Brisbane and Cronulla.[19]
He scored a try for Samoa in the 2025 Pacific Championships 24–18 defeat to New Zealand in Auckland.
Statistics
edit| Year | Team | Games | Tries | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 |  Newcastle Knights |
3 | ||
| 2022 | 14 | |||
| 2024 |  Canberra Raiders |
10 | 2 | 8 |
| 2025 | 22 | 7 | 28 | |
| 2026 | 8 | 4 | 16 | |
| Totals | 56 | 13 | 52 |
References
edit- ↑ "Panthers stumble against the Knights". Penrith Panthers. 15 February 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Simi Sasagi - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
- ↑ "Where we're from: Our cultural heritage". 15 March 2023 – via www.newcastleknights.com.au.
- 1 2 "Nathanael Sasagi". 1 May 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Exciting teen prospect Sasagi extends contract". Newcastle Knights. 17 December 2018. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Full 2020 squad list and development players". Newcastle Knights. 7 August 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Nathanael Sasagi". Newcastle Knights. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Big contingent in Junior Kiwis squad". Warriors. 10 September 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Full 2021 NRL squad list and development players". Newcastle Knights. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Round 9 NSW Cup Team List". Newcastle Knights. 5 May 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Late Mail: Sasagi debuts". Newcastle Knights. 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "Cowboys v Knights". National Rugby League. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ "NRL 2022: Newcastle Knights season review". www.sportingnews.com. 6 September 2022.
- ↑ "Raiders re-sign Tom Starling and sign Simi Sasagi". Canberra Raiders. 21 August 2023.
- ↑ "Raiders land yet another Newcastle Knight". The Canberra Times. 23 June 2023.
- ↑ "The Mole's end-of-season review: The 'wasted' enforcer Ricky Stuart must 'fire up' in 2025". www.nine.com.au. 11 September 2024.
- ↑ Stuart, Alex (13 March 2025). "Raiders extend utility forward on new deal". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
- ↑ "Simi Sasagi Re-Signs with the Raiders". Canberra Raiders. 19 August 2025. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
- ↑ "The Mole's season review: 'Immediate job' for Raiders as unfair 'chokers' tag threatens to cloud long summer". www.nine.com.au.