Kotoni Staggs

Kotoni Staggs (born 29 October 1998) is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a centre and second-row forward for the Brisbane Broncos in the NRL.

Kotoni Staggs

Personal information
Full name	Kotoni Staggs
Born	(1998-10-29) 29 October 1998 Wellington, New South Wales, Australia
Height	185 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	92 kg (14 st 7 lb)
Playing information
Position	Centre
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 2018– Brisbane Broncos 40 20 21 0 122 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 2019 Indigenous All Stars 1 0 0 0 0 2019 Tonga 2 0 2 0 4
As of 20 March 2020 Source: [1]

He is an Indigenous All Stars representative and cousin to Travis Porter.

Background

Staggs was born in Wellington, New South Wales, Australia and is of Indigenous Australian Wiradjuri people) and Tongan descent.[2] He was educated at Wellington High School.

He played his junior football for the Wellington Cowboys before being signed by the Brisbane Broncos.[3] Staggs played for the Broncos NYC team in 2017.[4]

Playing career

2018

After showing great form in the Under 20's, Staggs was promoted up to the Queensland Cup, playing for the Redcliffe Dolphins. Staggs was showing great performances for the Dolphins in the early rounds, bouncing between Centre and Second-Row, his versatility catching the eye of Broncos coach Wayne Bennett to include him into the full-time squad.[5][6] In the lead-up to the Broncos clash against the Sydney Roosters in Round 11 of the 2018 NRL season, Staggs was selected to make his NRL debut for the Brisbane Broncos off the interchange bench after Bennett originally selected young centre Gehamat Shibasaki for the bench role but went with Staggs instead before his versatility to play in the backs and forwards.[7][8] During the match, after Broncos fill in centre Tom Opacic suffered a concussion in only the second minute, Staggs come on to cover as centre and had an impressive debut, scoring a try, setting up a try for winger Corey Oates, running for 57 metres, made nine tackles and recorded five tackle busts during the Broncos thrilling 28-22 win at Suncorp Stadium.[9] In the lead-up up the Broncos clash with the New Zealand Warriors, after Broncos gun centre James Roberts was ruled out of the match from an Achilles tendon injury, Staggs was denied by a flaw in the NRL by not allowing him to start at centre because he wasn't included in the Broncos top 32 squad at the start of the season, so Jaydn Su’A had to start at centre but broke his ankle during the Broncos 26-6 unimpressing loss at Suncorp Stadium.[10][11] When Staggs wasn't selected for the Broncos, he would play his trade in the Queensland Cup, showing more great form and which the Dolphins would make the 2018 Queensland Cup Grand Final, playing about the Easts Tigers, scoring a try and kicking 6 goals in the 36-22 win at Suncorp Stadium.[12] Staggs would finish his debut NRL season with him playing in 9 matches and scoring 2 tries for the Broncos in the 2018 NRL season. On 13 October 2018, Staggs was selected to play for the Junior Kangaroos against the Junior Kiwis, playing at second-row in the 40-24 win at Mt Smart Stadium.[13]

2019

On 15 February 2019, Staggs represented the Indigenous All Stars against the New Zealand Maori All Stars team, playing off the interchange bench in the 34-14 win at AAMI Park. On July 7, 2019, Staggs kicked 4 conversions from 4 attempts in the "Baby Broncos"' crucial 2-point win over the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in round 16.[14][15]

Staggs made 24 appearances for Brisbane in the 2019 NRL season as the club finished 8th on the table and qualified for the finals. Staggs played in the club's elimination final against Parramatta which Brisbane lost 58-0 at the new Western Sydney Stadium. The defeat was the worst in Brisbane's history and also the biggest finals defeat in history.[16][17][18]

Controversy

On August 4 2020, a sex tape was released featuring Staggs. In a statement made by the Brisbane club, it had been reported that it was done without the players consent. Brisbane released a statement saying "The Brisbane Broncos have been made aware of a video recording involving Kotoni Staggs being circulated on social media," the statement read. "The video is of a highly personal nature and has been released without his consent. "The club is working closely with the NRL Integrity Unit, having alerted it as soon as becoming aware of the issue".[19]

References

1. Rugby League Project
2. https://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/broncos-young-gun-kotoni-staggs-to-make-nrl-debut-against-sydney-roosters/news-story/55ba65ca91b4c33247eb6728e21c74ec
3. https://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/5512303/staggs-living-out-a-dream-by-representing-the-broncos-and-his-family/
4. https://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/4451319/staggs-making-a-big-impact/
5. https://www.wellingtontimes.com.au/story/5214638/staggs-named-in-broncos-side-for-first-nrl-trial-of-2018/
6. https://www.qrl.com.au/news/20182/04/10/staggs-part-of-a-new-breed/
7. https://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/broncos-young-gun-kotoni-staggs-to-make-nrl-debut-against-sydney-roosters/news-story/55ba65ca91b4c33247eb6728e21c74ec
8. https://www.wellingtontimes.com.au/story/5406708/staggs-to-make-nrl-debut-wellington-gun-named-on-broncos-bench/
9. https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/teams/broncos/the-remarkable-story-behind-kotoni-staggs-raw-emotion-following-a-memorable-nrl-debut-with-the-brisbane-broncos/news-story/7de86e6da5fc5a17024baa851320187f
10. https://www.smh.com.au/sport/quirk-in-nrl-rules-force-broncos-into-unusual-selections-20180714-p4zrhq.htm
11. https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/07/15/road-warriors-bounce-back-to-thump-broncos-in-brisbane/
12. https://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/qrl/redcliffe-dolphins-down-easts-tigers-3622-to-win-intrust-super-cup-grand-final/news-story/372adbf84e08f01ec0846571fd0db9da
13. https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/10/13/junior-kangaroos-defeat-new-zealand-despite-incredible-try/
14. https://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/5881971/staggs-star-continues-to-rise-as-veteran-thompson-ruled-out/
15. https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-all-stars-maori-burned-by-indigenous-speed/news-story/e60c57a958695f255aa8ee5e4e8df5ed
16. "Parramatta Eels eliminate Brisbane Broncos from the NRL Finals with a thumping 58-0 win". ABC.
17. "Fuming Seibold fires off at players, promises review of roster after 'embarrassing' loss". Fox Sports.
18. "Seibold: 'Top to bottom' review needed as Brisbane search for answers". NRL.
19. "Kotoni Staggs sex tape video". www.sportingnews.com.

External links

• Brisbane Broncos profile