Viliame Kikau
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Viliame Hekmatzadah "Bill" Kikau (born 5 April 1995) is a Fijian professional
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 forward for the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilita ...
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 ...
, and
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
at international level. He previously played for the
Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrith ...
in the
National Rugby League 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 ...
, and is a dual NRL premiership winning player of 2021 and 2022.


Background

Kikau was born in
Nausori Nausori () is a town in Fiji. It had a population of 57,866 at the 2017 census. This makes it the fourth most populous municipality in the country. Situated 19 kilometers outside of Suva, it forms one pole of the burgeoning Suva-Nausori corrido ...
,
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
, and grew up in the small island of Bau. Kikau played
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
in his youth and later earned placements at
Queen Victoria School Queen Victoria School (QVS) is a non-selective, co-educational, boarding school predominantly for children of Scottish Servicemen/women (but see full admissions criteria, below) aged 10/11 to 18. It occupies a Scottish Baronial-style building on ...
and
Marist Brothers High School Marist Brothers High School is a Roman Catholic all-boys' high school situated in Suva, the capital of Fiji. It is a school in the Marist tradition, founded in 1946 by the order of Marist Brothers, which has had a presence in Fiji since 1844. ...
in
Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...
, where he played for their rugby union team and represented the Fiji Secondary Schools side against the
Australian Schoolboys The Australian Schoolboys refer to junior teams that represent Australia in various sports. The name is mainly used in rugby league, rugby union and baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players ...
. In 2013, Kikau who never played rugby league was scouted by
North Queensland North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its tropical northern part has been ...
recruiter Adrian Thomson in a schoolboy match and was one of three Fijian players who spent six weeks in
Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...
. Kikau was the only player to sign with the club and joined their
Holden Cup The NRL Under-20s (known commercially as the Holden Cup due to sponsorship from Holden) was the top league of professional rugby league for players aged 20 years or younger in Australasia. Contested by sixteen teams, the Under-20s competition c ...
team for the 2014 season. At the time Kikau was also being scouted by a number of French rugby union clubs


Early career


2014

In 2014, Kikau's first season of rugby league, he played 21 games for North Queensland's
Holden Cup The NRL Under-20s (known commercially as the Holden Cup due to sponsorship from Holden) was the top league of professional rugby league for players aged 20 years or younger in Australasia. Contested by sixteen teams, the Under-20s competition c ...
team, scoring 11 tries. A centre in his rugby union days, Kikau switched to prop after joining
North Queensland North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its tropical northern part has been ...
.


2015

In 2015, Kikau played in a pre-season trial game with North Queensland's first grade team. He scored a try in the sides 24–12 victory over the
Townsville Blackhawks The Townsville & Districts Blackhawks are an Australian semi-professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, Queensland. They compete in Queensland's top rugby league competition, the Queensland Cup. The club was admitted to the Que ...
. On 2 May 2015, Kikau made his international debut for
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
against
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
in the Melanesian Cup match, playing off the interchange bench in the 22–10 win at
Robina Stadium Robina Stadium, also known by its sponsored name Cbus Super Stadium, is a rectangular football stadium in the Gold Coast suburb of Robina, Queensland. The main usage is as the home ground to the National Rugby League's Gold Coast Titans; t ...
. On 10 June 2015, Kikau signed a two-year contract with the
Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrith ...
. On 14 September 2015, Kikau was named at prop in the 2015 NYC Team of the Year, finishing his
Holden Cup The NRL Under-20s (known commercially as the Holden Cup due to sponsorship from Holden) was the top league of professional rugby league for players aged 20 years or younger in Australasia. Contested by sixteen teams, the Under-20s competition c ...
career with the North Queensland club with 32 tries from 42 matches.


2016

Kikau spent 2016 playing in Penrith's
NSW Cup The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserv ...
team. On 8 October 2016, Kikau played for Fiji against
Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...
, starting at second-row in the 20–18 victory in
Apia Apia () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō ...
,
Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...
.


Playing career


2017

In Round 2, Kikau made his NRL debut for the
Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrith ...
against the
Wests Tigers The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional Rugby league, rugby league football team, based in the Inner West and South West Sydney. They have competed in the National Rugby League since being formed at the end of the 1999 NRL season as a j ...
, playing off the interchange bench and scoring a try in the 36–2 win at
Campbelltown Stadium Campbelltown Stadium, formerly Orana Park and Campbelltown Sports Ground, is a multi-use stadium in Leumeah, New South Wales, Australia, owned by Campbelltown City Council. It is the home ground of the Western Suburbs Magpies and the Wests Ti ...
. On 15 April, he re-signed with the
Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrith ...
to the end of the
2019 NRL season The 2019 NRL season was the 112th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 22nd season run by the National Rugby League. The Sydney Roosters became the first team to win back-to-back Premierships since the Brisbane Broncos in 1992 ...
. On 6 May, Kikau played for Fiji against
Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
, starting at second-row and scoring a try in the 26–24 loss at Campbelltown Stadium. Kikau would play most of the year playing in Penrith's NSW cup team where they won the NSW Intrust Super premiership against the
Wyong Roos The Wyong Rugby League Football Club are an Australian rugby league club based on the Central Coast of New South Wales. The club competed in the New South Wales Cup from 2013 to 2018 and still competes in the Central Coast Division Rugby Leagu ...
20–12. A week later on 1 October, Kikau played in the
NRL State Championship The NRL State Championship is a rugby league match contested by the premiers of the two elite second-tier competitions in Australia, the New South Wales Cup and the Queensland Cup. The match has been played as a curtain-raiser to the NRL Grand F ...
match against QLD Cup winners the
Papua New Guinea Hunters The Papua New Guinea Hunters (PNG Hunters) are a professional rugby league football club based in Papua New Guinea. They were formed in December 2013 and currently compete in the Queensland Rugby League, currently called the Hostplus Cup, a sec ...
starting at second-row and scoring a try in the 42–18 boilover win. Kikau finished his debut year in the NRL with 9 matches and 1 try for the Panthers in the NRL. On 7 October, he was named in the 24-man squad for Fiji for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. Kikau had an outstanding tournament for Fiji playing in all of their 5 matches and scoring 3 tries and was rewarded with him being named in the World Cup Team of the Tournament.


2018

After his impressive World Cup campaign, Kikau would cement a permanent place in Penrith's top 17. He made 25 appearances in the
2018 NRL season The 2018 NRL season was the 111th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 21st season run by the National Rugby League. The main competition, known as the 2018 Telstra Premiership due to sponsorship from Telstra, featured 16 team ...
as the club finished 5th and reached the elimination final against Cronulla-Sutherland before losing 21–20.


2019

In round 23 of the 2019 NRL season, Kikau played his 50th NRL game for Penrith in their 24–10 defeat by the
North Queensland Cowboys The North Queensland Cowboys is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest town in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Sinc ...
at
1300Smiles stadium The Willows Sports Complex, currently known as 1300SMILES Stadium through Naming rights, sponsorship, is a grass football stadium situated in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It has been a predominantly rugby league ground as the home ground o ...
. Kikau made a total of 18 appearances for Penrith in the
2019 NRL season The 2019 NRL season was the 112th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 22nd season run by the National Rugby League. The Sydney Roosters became the first team to win back-to-back Premierships since the Brisbane Broncos in 1992 ...
as the club finished 10th on the table and missed out on the finals for the first time since 2015.


2020

Kikau played 19 games for Penrith in the
2020 NRL season The 2020 NRL season was the 113th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 23rd season run by the National Rugby League. Teams The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 14th consecutive year. ; Notes : : : Pre-season ...
as the club won the Minor Premiership. Kikau played in the 2020 NRL Grand Final for Penrith in which they lost 26-20 against Melbourne.


2021

In round 2 of the 2021 NRL season, he scored two tries in a 28-0 victory over Canterbury-Bankstown. In round 4 of the 2021 NRL season, he scored two tries in a 46-6 victory over Manly-Warringah at
Brookvale Oval Brookvale Oval (also known by the commercial sponsorship name 4 Pines Park) is a sporting ground located within Brookvale Park at Brookvale, New South Wales, Australia. The ground is owned by Northern Beaches Council and is primarily used by th ...
. On 27 September, Kikau was named Dally M Second Rower of the year alongside Parramatta's
Isaiah Papali'i Isaiah Papali'i (born 20 September 1998) is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a forward for the Wests Tigers in the National Rugby League, NRL. He has played for both Samoa national rugby league team, Samoa and New Zealand na ...
. Kikau played a total of 27 games for Penrith in the 2021 NRL season including the club's 2021 NRL Grand Final victory over South Sydney. Kikau scored a second half try in the final but was disallowed on review due to the pass from
Nathan Cleary Nathan Cleary (born 14 November 1997) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a the Penrith Panthers in the NRL and Australia at international level. He won both the 2021 and the 2022 NRL Grand Finals with the Panth ...
being ruled forward. Following Penrith's grand final victory, an intoxicated Kikau went on
Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
and mocked South Sydney by singing their club song. Penrith teammate
Tyrone May Tyrone May (born 21 June 1996) is a Samoan international rugby league footballer who plays for the Catalans Dragons in the Super League. Primarily a or , May has played in a number of other positions during his career, including and . May ...
then appeared on the video and said "I don’t give a f***. F*** every motherf***er, n***er". In November, an image of Kikau was leaked from a security camera within Canterbury Leagues Club showing Kikau posting in a Canterbury shirt along with head coach
Trent Barrett Trent Barrett (born 18 November 1977) is an Australian professional rugby league football coach who is a former head coach and a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. He was previously the head ...
and head of football Phil Gould. Kikau then took to social media and explained the situation saying "Today photos were taken of me wearing another club’s colours," Kikau wrote. "Me and my manager were told the photos wouldn’t become public until the appropriate time. I am very disappointed that didn’t happen and regret the upset it has caused. I want the Panthers fans to know I remain fully committed to our club and the team for the upcoming season. I can’t wait to celebrate our premiership with you".


2022

In round 2 of the 2022 NRL season, Kikau scored two tries for Penrith in a 20-16 victory over St. George Illawarra. Kikau played 25 games throughout the season for Penrith including the clubs 2022 NRL Grand Final victory over
Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...
. In the second group stage match of the
2021 Rugby League World Cup The 2021 Rugby League World Cup (RLWC2021) was a collection of world cups in the sport of rugby league, held in England from 15 October to 19 November 2022. England won hosting rights for the competition on 27 October 2016. The bid received £2 ...
, Kikau scored two tries for Fiji in their 60-4 victory over Italy.


References


External links


Penrith Panthers profile2017 RLWC profileFiji profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kikau, Viliame 1995 births Fijian rugby league players Fiji national rugby league team players Penrith Panthers players Rugby league props Fijian expatriates in Australia Expatriate rugby league players in Australia People from Nausori I-Taukei Fijian people People educated at Marist Brothers High School, Fiji Living people