Tino Fa'asuamaleaui () (born 16 February 2000) is a professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who captains the

Gold Coast Titans The Gold Coast Titans are a professional rugby league football club, based on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership, Australia's elite rugby league competition. Since 2008, the ...

playing as a

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

and

prop A prop, formally known as a (theatrical) property, is an object actors use on stage or screen during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

forward in the

National Rugby League The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

(NRL). He has played for

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

at international level. He previously played for the

Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm is a rugby league football club based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia that participates in the National Rugby League (NRL). The club plays its home games at AAMI Park, and wears a purple and navy blu ...

with whom he won the

2020 NRL Grand Final The 2020 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2020 National Rugby League season held at Sydney's ANZ Stadium on October 25. The match was contested between minor premiers Penrith Panthers and second-placed Me ...

. He has played for the

Prime Minister's XIII Prime Minister's XIII, or sometimes informally referred to as the PM's XIII, a representative rugby league team, comprising Australian players from National Rugby League clubs that did not qualify for the NRL Finals, or whose teams were knocked ...

and the

Queensland Maroons The Queensland rugby league team represents the Australian state of Queensland in rugby league football. Nicknamed the "Maroons" after the colour of their jersey, they play three times a year against arch-rivals New South Wales rugby league tea ...

in the

State of Origin series The State of Origin series is an annual best-of-three rugby league series between two States and territories of Australia, Australian state representative sides, the New South Wales rugby league team, New South Wales Blues and the Queensland ru ...

Background

Fa'asuamaleaui was born in

Orange, New South Wales Orange is a city in the Central Tablelands region of New South Wales, Australia. It is west of the state capital, Sydney on a great circle at an altitude of . Orange had an urban population of 41,920 at the 2021 Australia Census, 2021 Cens ...

to a Samoan father and an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

mother. His father, Fereti Fa'asuamaleaui, was contracted to the

Sydney City Roosters Eastern Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club, known as the Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Eastern Suburbs. The club competes in the National Rugby Lea ...

and played reserve grade for them in the mid-1990s. Fereti had previously represented

in rugby union. When he was 14 weeks old, his family moved to Widgee, Queensland, where he attended James Nash State High School, Gympie. He played his junior rugby league for the Gympie Devils and was then signed by the

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Red Hill, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos compete in the National Rugby League (NRL) and play their home games at ...

as a teenager. He is the brother of

Iszac Fa'asuamaleaui Iszac Fa'asuamaleaui () (born 1 December 2001) is a professional rugby league player who plays for the Gold Coast Titans as a in the National Rugby League (NRL). He is the brother of Tino Fa'asuamaleaui. Background Fa'asuamaleaui was born in ...

Playing career

Early career

In 2016, Fa'asuamaleaui played for the Central Crows in the

Cyril Connell Cup The Cyril Connell Challenge is an under-16 competition administered by the Queensland Rugby League. The competition was named after Cyril Connell Jr., who played 24 games for Queensland and 2 Tests for Australia. The tournament mainly features ...

and was selected to represent the Queensland under-16 side. In 2017, after starting the season with the

Sunshine Coast Falcons The Sunshine Coast Falcons are a rugby league football team based on Queensland's Sunshine Coast. They compete in the Queensland Cup and their home ground is Sunshine Coast Stadium. The Falcons are currently affiliated with the NRL team Melbo ...

Mal Meninga Cup The Mal Meninga Cup, known as the Auswide Bank Mal Meninga Cup due to sponsorship, is a junior rugby league football competition based in Queensland, played between teams made up of players aged under 18. The competition, administered by the Q ...

side, he signed with

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, playing for their NYC side. In June, he was selected for the Queensland under-18 side In 2018, Fa'asuamaleaui began the season playing for the Storm's

Queensland Cup The Queensland Cup, currently known as the Hostplus Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the highest-level regional rugby league, rugby league football competition in Queensland, Australia. It is run by the Queensland Rugby League, Queensland Rugby ...

feeder side, the

, before switching to the club's other feeder, the

Easts Tigers The Brisbane Tigers are a rugby league club based at Langlands Park, in the suburb of Coorparoo in Brisbane, Australia. Since 1996, they have competed in the Queensland Cup, having competed in the Brisbane Rugby League premiership (rugby league ...

, midway through the year. In June, he was again selected for the Queensland under-18 side. In July, he came off the bench in the Queensland under-20's first ever win over New South Wales. In October, he scored two tries in the

Junior Kangaroos The Junior Kangaroos side represents Australia in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kangaroos, after the native marsupial of that name. Since 2019, they are an under-23 side, with players selected from the NRL. Th ...

40–24 win over the

Junior Kiwis The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. Since 2010, they are an under-20s side, with players selected from the NRL, Intrust Sup ...

2019

In Round 16 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 ...

, Fa'asuamaleaui made his NRL debut for

against the

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

. On 7 October, Fa’asuamaleaui was named on the bench for the U23 Junior Australian side. He then followed up by making his international test debut for Toa Samoa. On 19 December, Fa'asuamaleaui signed a three-year deal with the

starting in 2021.

2020

Fa’asuamaleaui played off the bench in Melbourne's

win over the

Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Greater Western Sydney suburb of Penrith, New South Wales, Penrith that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL). The team is based west of the cen ...

in a 26-20 win. At the Melbourne Storm Player of the Year Awards in October 2020, he was awarded the Rookie of the Year Award. After the grand final, he was rewarded by making his

debut in the

2020 State of Origin series The 2020 State of Origin series was the 39th State of Origin series, annual best-of-three series between the Queensland rugby league team, Queensland and New South Wales rugby league team, New South Wales rugby league teams. Before this series, Q ...

Game 1 at the

Adelaide Oval The Adelaide Oval is a stadium in Adelaide in the state of South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Parklands, parklands. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby league, ...

2021

He made his club debut for the Gold Coast in round 1 of the

2021 NRL season The 2021 NRL season was the 114th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 24th season run by the National Rugby League. Teams The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 15th consecutive year. Regular season Ladd ...

against the

New Zealand Warriors The 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 the Aucklan ...

. In round 6, he was placed on report for an illegal shoulder charge during the club's 36-0 loss against Manly-Warringah and suspended for two games. He played 23 games for the Gold Coast in the

including the club's elimination final loss against the

Sydney Roosters Eastern Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club, known as the Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Eastern Suburbs. The club competes in the National Rugby Lea ...

. On 23 November, he signed a $3.3 million contract extension to remain at the Gold Coast until the end of the 2026 season.

2022

On 3 February, he was named as captain of the Gold Coast Titans. In May, he was selected by Queensland for games one, two and three of the

2022 State of Origin series The 2022 State of Origin series was the 41st State of Origin series, annual best-of-three series between the Queensland rugby league team, Queensland and New South Wales rugby league team, New South Wales rugby league teams. Before this series, Q ...

. In game three, he was fined 20% of his payment for the game after grabbing

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

player

Matt Burton Matt Burton (born 14 March 2000) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the National Rugby League. Burton represents Australia at international level and previously playe ...

in a headlock while teammate

Dane Gagai Dane Gagai () (born 3 January 1991) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a for the Newcastle Knights in the National Rugby League, the Queensland Maroons in the State of Origin series and the Māori All Stars.. H ...

repeatedly punched him. It was described as a sickening, disgraceful act and went without proper punishment. Following the incident, Fa’asuamaleaui revealed that he and his family were subjected to hate online. In round 14 of the

2022 NRL season The 2022 NRL season was 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 ...

, he scored two tries for the Gold Coast in a 30-16 loss against South Sydney. He played a total of 22 games for the club throughout the season as they finished 13th on the table. In October, he was named in the Australia squad for 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 � ...

. He played for Australia in their 2021 Rugby League World Cup final victory over Samoa.

2023

Fa’asuamaleaui played all three games of the

2023 State of Origin series The 2023 State of Origin series was the 42nd annual best-of-three series between the Queensland and New South Wales rugby league teams. Before this series, Queensland had won 23 times, NSW 16 times, with two series drawn. Venues Game I was hel ...

. Following the Gold Coast's 25-24 loss against Parramatta in round 20 of the

2023 NRL season The 2023 NRL season was the 116th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 26th season run by the National Rugby League. The season consisted of 27 competition rounds, the longest in league history, followed by a finals series ...

, Fa'asuamaleaui was suspended for three matches over an illegal shoulder charge. On 11 August, Fa'asuamaleaui re-signed with the Gold Coast outfit on a ten-year extension contract. He played a total of 19 matches for the Gold Coast in the

as the club finished 14th on the table.

2024

Fa’asuamaleaui played just two games for the Gold Coast in the

2024 NRL season The 2024 NRL season was the 117th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 27th season run by the National Rugby League (NRL). The season consisted of 27 competition rounds, followed by a finals series contested by the top eight ...

, suffering a ruptured ACL in their round 3 loss to the

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...

and being ruled out of the remainder of the season.

Statistics

source:

Honours

Individual *

Rookie of the Year: 2020 *

Member’s MVP: 2021 *

Player of the Year: 2021, 2022 Club *

Winners Representative *

Winners *

Winners International *

Winners

References

External links

Gold Coast Titans profile

Melbourne Storm profileNRL profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fa'asuamaleaui, Tino 2000 births Living people Australia national rugby league team players Australian sportspeople of Samoan descent Australian rugby league players Brisbane Tigers players Gold Coast Titans captains Gold Coast Titans players Melbourne Storm players Prime Minister's XIII players Queensland Residents rugby league team players Queensland Rugby League State of Origin players Rugby league locks Rugby league players from Orange, New South Wales Rugby league props Samoa national rugby league team players Samoan rugby league players Sunshine Coast Falcons players 21st-century Australian sportsmen