Kayal Roy Iro (born 20 February 2000) is a
Cook Islands
)
, image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, capital = Avarua
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Avarua
, official_languages =
, lan ...
international
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
footballer who plays as a er and for the
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in the
NRL
The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...
.
Background
Iro is the son of former player
Kevin Iro
Kevin Leslie Iro (born 24 May 1968), also known by the nickname of '"The Beast", is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, and coached in the 2000s. He played at representative level for New Zeala ...
and nephew of coach
Tony Iro
Tony Roy Iro (born 30 May 1967) is a professional rugby league coach who is the head coach of the Cook Islands national rugby league team and a former professional rugby league footballer. He is a former New Zealand international representativ ...
.
He grew up in
Rarotonga
Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 13,007 of a total population of 17,434. The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings a ...
where he played for the Arorangi Bears, then moved to Auckland at age 14 and attended
Mount Albert Grammar School
Mount Albert Grammar School, commonly known as MAGS, is a co-educational state secondary school in Mount Albert in Auckland, New Zealand. It teaches students in year levels 9 to 13. , Mount Albert Grammar School is the second largest school in ...
.
Playing career
New Zealand Warriors
In 2019, Iro played for the
New Zealand Warriors
The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as ...
under 20s, before moving to the
Newcastle Knights.
[
]
Newcastle Knights
On 12 November 2019, Iro signed a one-year under 20s contract with the Newcastle Knights.
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
In round 24 of the 2022 NRL season
The 2022 NRL season is the 115th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 25th season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 16th consecutive year. This became the second longest s ...
, Iro made his first grade debut for Cronulla in their 16-0 victory over Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
.
Iro won the New South Wales Cup player of the year for the 2022 NSW Cup season while playing for the Newtown Jets, the reserve grade affiliate of the Sharks.
International
Iro represented the in the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s
The 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s was the first staging of the Rugby League World Cup 9s tournament and took place on 18 and 19 October 2019 at Sydney's Bankwest Stadium. The tournament featured teams from 12 International Rugby League member ...
, scoring two tries in a 30–7 victory against .
He made his full international début in the 66–6 win over South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
on 21 June 2019 at .
Statistics
NRL
: ''Statistics are correct as of the end of the 2022 season''
International
Notes and references
Notes
References
External links
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks profileCronulla Sharks profileNew Zealand Warriors profileCook Islands profile
2000 births
Living people
People from Rarotonga
Cook Island rugby league players
Cook Islands national rugby league team players
Rugby league fullbacks
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks players
{{CookIslands-rugbyleague-bio-stub