Katoa repays schoolboy debt to Dolphins with loyalty
Joel Gould |
Dolphins captain Isaiya Katoa was still at school with no NRL pedigree when the new franchise took a punt on him, which partly explains why he has a deep-seated loyalty to the club.
It is why he never flinched before signing a long-term deal, and why he had no intention of chasing dollars in the lead-up to NRL expansion.
Katoa, still just 21, will lead the eighth-placed Dolphins against Sydney Roosters on Saturday night at Suncorp Stadium as one of the game’s leading playmakers.
He had come through the Penrith system as an elite talent, but was untested in the big time when the Dolphins signed him.
Katoa inked a deal until the end of 2025 initially, but in March last year negotiated an upgrade and three-year extension until the end of 2028.
There was interest from other clubs, but Katoa had no interest in looking for the extra dollar that may have been available.
He was also confident that assistant coach Kristian Woolf, now head coach, would get the best out of him when Wayne Bennett moved on.
The Dolphins and Katoa mutually decided to get the deal done.
It was clear at that point expansion was on the horizon, but holding out for a big deal at what turned out to be two new clubs – Perth and PNG – was also not on Katoa’s agenda.
“I just knew that I needed to repay the club for taking a chance on me,” Katoa said.
“I came here out of school and was playing maybe four or five games of rugby league a year. For them to have the faith in me to come and ultimately be the halfback at their club was one thing.
“The other thing is that I am loving it here. I have never once not felt like I wasn’t at home. As soon as I got here I got that feeling straight away.
“Another big thing was Woolfy. Having him be my first NRL coach (initially as an assistant) and internationally has had a massive impact on my career so far.
“The money wasn’t a problem for me. I knew where I was happy and where I was going to get the best out of myself as a footy player and as a person.”
Katoa was still at school when he toured New Zealand with the Tonga side in mid-2022 under Woolf. He played a role in camp but did not play.
Before he had played an NRL game, Katoa debuted for Tonga at the 2022 World Cup in England, where he also remotely sat his final exams at school.
It was there the Woolf-Katoa partnership was forged, and now it is reaping rewards.
Katoa, now with 63 NRL games and nine Tests under his belt, was elevated to the captaincy after injuries to Tom Gilbert and Felise Kaufusi and is now fine-tuning the art of leadership.
“Responsibility is the biggest thing. For me as a captain it is not about what I am saying. It is the actions I am doing on the field,” Katoa said.
“When Tommy and Fus were still captains I was still very vocal in controlling our attack and our team mindset. I have made it clear to the group that, yes, I have been given the captaincy, but my role within the team doesn’t change.”
AAP
