Starford To'a

Starford To'a (born 23 June 2000) is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a for the Wests Tigers in the National Rugby League.

He previously played for the Newcastle Knights as a er in the NRL.

Background To'a was born in Auckland, New Zealand and is of Tongan and European descent. He attended St Paul's College, Auckland.

Playing career Early years In 2018, he moved to Australia to play for the Newcastle Knights, after being scouted by a recruitment manager for the Knights in 2016 at a New Zealand national tournament in Rotorua. At the end of 2018, he played for the Australian Schoolboys and was named man of the match in their first game.

2019 In 2019, To'a joined the Knights' NRL squad for pre-season training and played in a first-grade trial match. In June, he re-signed with the Knights on a 2-year contract until the end of 2021. In round 25 of the 2019 NRL season, he made his NRL debut for the Knights against the Penrith Panthers and scored a try. On 29 September, he will play for the Junior Kiwis against the Junior Kangaroos.

2020 He made seven appearances for Newcastle in the 2020 NRL season and scored four tries. To'a did not feature in the club's first finals campaign since 2013.

2021 In 2021, To'a made 12 appearances for the Knights, scoring 6 tries.

2022 In January 2022, To'a was granted a release from the final two years of his Newcastle contract to join the Wests Tigers on a two-year contract effective immediately. To'a played a total of 21 matches for the Wests Tigers in the 2022 NRL season and scored 3 tries as the club finished bottom of the table and claimed the wooden spoon for the first time.

2023 In round 12 of the 2023 NRL season, To'a scored two tries for the Wests Tigers in their record breaking victory at 66-18 against the North Queensland. In round 24, To'a scored two tries for the Wests Tigers in their 22-30 loss against the New Zealand Warriors. To'a played a total of 18 games for the Wests Tigers in the 2023 NRL season and scored seven tries as the club finished with the wooden spoon for a second straight year. In the end of season internationals, he was selected and made his debut for the Mate Ma’a Tonga team against England, where he scored a hat trick in a 34-16 win.

2024 & 2025 To'a was limited to only three appearances with the Wests Tigers in the 2024 NRL season as the club finished with the wooden spoon for a third straight year. In round 13 of the 2025 NRL season, he scored two tries in Wests 32-38 loss against North Queensland. On 15 August, Wests announced that To'a had extended his contract for a further two seasons. To'a played a total of 19 games for the Wests Tigers in the 2025 NRL season as the club finished 13th on the table.

2026 On 22 June, the Tigers announced that To'a would depart the club at the end of the season, with Manly announcing that they had signed him on a two year deal.

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