Inside Story: How the Roosters landed Marky Nawaqanitawase

Nawaqanitawase, the hottest property in the NRL after a season in which he has netted 23 tries in 22 games for the Sydney Roosters, was finishing year 12 and making waves in the world of rugby union when some of his friends suggested he could cut it at as a good rugby league player.

Nawaqanitawase had played as a youngster but at the time he had aspirations to play at a rugby union World Cup.

The NRL wasn’t at the forefront of his mind, although that conversation remained in his head and that of his management team as a perfect storm led Nawaqanitawase to eventually dip his toe in the NRL waters.

Some move it has been.

In just over a year, Nawaqanitawase has become a dynamic playmaker for a Roosters side that has cut a swath through the competition in the latter stages of the season.

On Saturday night at Shark Park, he will be front and centre as the Roosters attempt to keep their premiership dream alive against the Sharks.

And when the season is over – potentially with a premiership in his keeping – smart judges believe Nawaqanitawase is on his way to becoming the first dual international for Australia since Karmichael Hunt nearly two decades ago.

At some point, he will also sit down with his management and the Roosters to discuss his future. His next contract threatens to reshape the market for wingers at a time when the code is preparing to agree a new broadcasting deal and rugby union is lurking in the background.

“As a kid you grow up wanting to be a footy star,” Nawaqanitawase said.

“(I am) living the dream.”

This is the story about how Nawaqanitawase’s dream came to fruition and how a 23-year-old rugby union convert has become one of the stories of the NRL season.

APPEARING ON THE ROOSTERS RADAR

Everyone wants a piece of Nawaqanitawase, but it seems everyone is also happy to pass on the credit for his arrival at the Roosters.

Roosters coach Trent Robinson insists it was chair Nick Politis who first raised the prospect of looking at Nawaqanitawase.

Others close to the Roosters star suggest Robinson was the driving force.

At the time, rugby union was in a state of flux having appointed Eddie Jones to replace Dave Rennie and take the Wallabies to the World Cup.

Nawaqanitawase was seemingly an afterthought as Rugby Australia devoted all their energies – and finances – to try to convince Roosters star Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii to switch codes.

The Roosters were on the lookout for an outside back with some x-factor, and their desire only rose when Suaalii opted to accept a mega-offer from rugby union – the switch was confirmed in March 2023.

The Nawaqanitawase camp and the Roosters quickly kicked into gear.

Robinson reached out to former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika – his former assistant – to get a gauge on how the transition would work.

Cheika was well versed in Nawaqanitawase not only through rugby, but via a personal connection with the Lebanon rugby league team.

“Nick got word that Mark was interested in coming across to rugby league and if there would be any interest in that,” Robinson said.

“Like a lot of these things, there is an innocent interest and it stops there.

“But there was enough curiosity from Mark.

“We were watching him play then we did a bit of research. I spoke to Check. I knew Mark straight away because I’d watch him play.

“I watch sports in general so I did watch him coming through.

“You get glimpses then you start asking questions. Check was pretty helpful in those terms. And Mark was still young. He was 22 when we met but he played a bit of big game footy.

“There are a couple of things you look for: Is there talent? What’s his character like? And as far as his coachability, it’s been exceptional to see him develop because he has those traits.”

Cheika never had any doubt that Nawaqanitawase would succeed.

“Mark was always going to be successful when he went to league,” Cheika said.

“Not for any reason of skills or anything like that – because he’d made the decisions to take himself out of his comfort zone and test himself where people doubted he could survive let alone succeed, including himself, in front of everybody watching – once you make a commitment like that you are already a success.”

PAINTING A PICURE

Robinson first caught up with Nawaqanitawase in early 2023.

Neither party was looking to get a deal done, but the meeting was designed as an opportunity for the pair to feel each other out.

Robinson wanted to know what made Nawaqanitawase tick. Nawaqanitawase wanted to know how he would fit in at the Roosters. They met at Robinson’s house in the eastern suburbs of Sydney and both walked away impressed.

“After the meeting, we left it for a while,” Robinson said.

“You see that stuff grows or it falls away. It grew a few months later after another meeting. The meeting probably wasn’t what I expected.

“I’m not surprised now that I know him, but it was slightly different to the average meeting you’d have. There’s an ease to him and an interesting mix of happiness and an energy.

“That was really apparent when I first met him. It was easy to talk to him and it’s been easy to coach him and have conversations.”

It helped that Robinson had an appreciation for rugby union. He spent part of his playing and coaching career in the south of France, where rugby union is a more prominent sport.

He also had a relationship with the likes of Cheika and an appreciation for the way rugby union was played, having told those close to Nawaqanitawase that he wanted to incorporate more rugby union attacking structures into the NRL.

Then Nawaqanitawase sat down and was blown away.

“My manager told me they’d be interested to sit down and have a chat, you know?” Nawaqanitawase said.

“So I actually had a chat with Robbo then and we talked about a few things about what it would be like, get to know each other.

“It was at his house. During the day, just a casual, what-could-be kind of thing. And it was kind of just dropped from there because obviously I had a season to do.

“You know, I was hoping to play for the Wallabies and get to the World Cup.

“He’s very professional in that sense and didn’t want to affect me during the year, so that’s kind of where it all kind of started.

“I was like, I just met Trent Robinson. Don’t tell him, but I was in awe. Obviously Trent Robinson’s been so successful and he’s one of the best coaches ever.

“So it’s pretty cool that I had the opportunity to sit down with him.

“Originally, I was like, ‘I’m union, I’ll probably stay in union’. Man, I actually came out of that meeting and it actually made me more curious about it.”

Asked what they discussed, Nawaqanitawase said: “Just the way I could come into the game and be used in the game, I guess the way they played and how I could fit in there.

“He was just very detailed. And I liked that. I liked that detail and it was good to see an image of myself. He painted a picture for me if that makes sense.

“I can actually see myself in there. That was pretty cool. It was very, very cool and obviously, it helped me make the decision easier.”

YEAH, LET’S DO IT

The Roosters and Nawaqanitawase parked their talks. Nawaqanitawase went to the World Cup and did his reputation no harm as the Wallabies endured a difficult time.

Rugby Australia, though, were asleep at the wheel. They dawdled, the Roosters saw an opportunity and they didn’t muck around.

Enter Politis, one of the shrewdest and smartest deal makers in the game. Robinson’s house was again the venue, only this time Politis was also in attendance.

“I guess they were still interested and I was also curious to see how it would work,” Nawaqanitawase said.

“As you do, you meet up, you talk – I went to the house again. Met Nick – we went to lunch. It was good just to meet Robbo and Nick personally first.

“Obviously, it grew on me a lot more and then I made a decision to sign with them.”

Even then, he had some hurdles to jump.

The biggest was his mother Fiona, who was a staunch rugby union supporter. That stance has since changed with the way her son has adapted to rugby league, but she needed some convincing.

The Roosters wanted an answer and Nawaqanitawase was ready to make a call.

“I was at home and calls were coming in from my agents Milan (Volavola-Shankar) and Andrew (Fairbairn),” he said.

“I was just with my parents – my mum and my stepdad. I was actually having a little battle with my mum, because my mum hated the sport and she didn’t want me doing it.

“Now she’s head over heels for the game. I still remember, I was just like, ‘Mum, I have to do this’. She’s just like, ‘Stay in union’.

“I got a bit emotional in there and I had to make the decision myself.

“They were both involved, but at the end of the day it’s my decision and they supported it even after all our chats.

“It was an emotional day but it was a good day. It was the decision I needed to do. It’s obviously been one of the best decisions I’ve made.”

With that, Nawaqanitawase picked up the phone and FaceTimed Fairburn.

“We’re on, let’s do it,” he said.

Fairburn asked him one more time whether he was ready.

“Yeah, let’s do it,” Nawaqanitawase replied.

Fairburn hung up, called Politis, then went and had coffee with Robinson, where they agreed to release a statement.

Rugby union didn’t react well. Nawaqanitawase was frozen out of the Wallabies even though they were playing more than a dozen Test matches in 2024.

Instead, he opted to go to the Paris Olympics with the Australian 7s team.

On his return, the Roosters got their hands on him ahead of schedule and Nawaqanitawase was given a taste of the NRL, scoring a try on debut.

The best was yet to come.

THE FUTURE

There was never a doubt over Nawaqanitawase’s talent and athleticism.

The only concern if there was one was how he would adapt to a sport he had played as a teenager but never at the highest level.

The answer has been emphatic. Nawaqanitawase has been a star since making a permanent move to the wing and Kangaroos coach Kevin Walters must be watching closely.

“The things he has been doing at training and his control of the ball through one hand, two hands, kicking, is as good as I’ve seen,” Robinson said.

“We still weren’t sure where we would play him. We trained him in all positions. Left and right centre, left and right wing and fullback.

“We were trying to develop in rugby league areas like tackling and decision making, decision making on edge defence and backfield carries while admiring the skill level with ball in hand.

“He is a high connection person – a people’s person. His ability to connect with the players around him and know where they are going to be is outside his ball skills.

“He has a foundation of talent, but it is about how much you are willing to train, adapt and be coached at a high capacity which is why he develops quicker than most people.”

Rival players have watched on with awe.

“Oh mate, if I could describe him, he’s entertaining to watch to be honest,” said Melbourne winger Will Warbrick, a former 7s star as well.

“I sort of appreciate the way he plays the game. I feel like he plays the way that he just believes in himself. You know he’s athletically gifted.

“Some of the skills he has and he has and also the belief to back himself – he has done things in the game that I haven’t been able to see other wingers do.

“Full credit to him. He’s a good player. I actually remember playing against him once in a sevens tournament and he was very similar then. He was a freak with the ball, man.”

The challenge for the Roosters now is to convince him to stay.

Nawaqanitawase has put contract talks on hold until the off-season when he will sit down with his management for a full debrief.

Those closest to him insist it will be the Roosters or rugby. They can’t see him playing for another team in the NRL. The bigger question may be whether he has any interest in following the Sonny Bill Williams playbook of switching between the codes.

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Until that decision arrives, buckle up and enjoy the ride.

“It’s what I wanted to do when I was young,” Nawaqanitawase said.

“I am having so much fun with the people at the club, the boys on the field and my family are loving it. It’s a good life.”

Originally published as Inside Story: How the Roosters landed Marky Nawaqanitawase