Tawera Nikau

Crunching NZ Test forward was an important part of Cronulla’s success in the 1997 Super League season. A veteran of English club football (York, Sheffield and Castleford) Nikau made his Test debut against Great Britain in 1990. Nikau last represented his country in the ANZac Test in 1997 but declined to play for the Kiwis because of a feud with team-mate Richie Blackmore. In 1998 he was recruited by the Melbourne Storm and was a driving force in the infant club’s grand final win in 1999. The following year he signed with Warrington and captained the Maori squad in the World Cup competition. At the end of the 2001 season Nikau planned to return to the Sharks and renew his association with former Melbourne coach Chris Anderson but the death of his wife in England saw him return to NZ where he coached Waikato to premiership victory. Nikau later lost his right leg in a motorbike accident and his courageous battle to overcome these tragedies is outlined in his 2004 autobiography, Standing Tall.

Career Statistics

All statistics shown in this section are based only on data available in the RLP database, and are not necessarily a complete and/or 100% accurate representation of a player's career. This information should be used as a guide only. If you see a question mark (?), it denotes that the figure is not available.

To view a list of corresponding matches, click on the icon.

International
Test Matches - By Team
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
New Zealand	1990-94, 1997	19	4	-				-	16	9	9	1	47.37%
New Zealand Maori	2000	3	-	-				-	-	1	2	0	33.33%
Overall	1990-2000	22	4	0				0	16	10	11	1	45.45%
World Cup Matches - By Team
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
New Zealand	1990-92	5	1	-				-	4	4	1	0	80.00%
New Zealand Maori	2000	3	-	-				-	-	1	2	0	33.33%
Overall	1990-2000	8	1	0				0	4	5	3	0	62.50%
Club Career
Australian League Matches - By Year
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
Cronulla	ARL 1995	15	2	-				-	8	10	5	0	66.67%
Cronulla	ARL 1996	24	1	-				-	4	16	6	2	66.67%
Cronulla	Super League 1997	22	1	-				-	4	14	8	0	63.64%
Melbourne	NRL 1998	27	4	-				-	16	18	8	1	66.67%
Melbourne	NRL 1999	26	4	-				-	16	18	8	0	69.23%
Overall	1995-1999	114	12	0				0	48	76	35	3	66.67%
Australian League Matches - By Team
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
Cronulla	1995-97	61	4	-				-	16	40	19	2	65.57%
Melbourne	1998-99	53	8	-				-	32	36	16	1	67.92%
Overall	1995-1999	114	12	0				0	48	76	35	3	66.67%
Australian Finals Matches - By Team
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
Cronulla	1995-97	9	-	-				-	-	4	5	0	44.44%
Melbourne	1998-99	7	-	-				-	-	4	3	0	57.14%
Overall	1995-1999	16	0	0				0		8	8	0	50.00%
English League Career - By Year
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
Sheffield Eagles	Championship 1989/90	?	4	-				-	16
Castleford	Championship 1991/92	?	3	-				-	12
Castleford	Championship 1992/93	?	2	-				-	8
Castleford	Championship 1993/94	?	4	-				-	16
Castleford	Championship 1994/95	?	8	-				-	32
Castleford	Championship 1995/96	?	2	-				-	8
Castleford	Super League 1996	?	-	-				-	-
Warrington	Challenge Cup 2000	4	1	-				-	4	3	1	0	75.00%
Warrington	Super League V 2000	27	2	-				-	8	13	14	0	48.15%
Warrington	Challenge Cup 2001	4	1	-				-	4	3	1	0	75.00%
Warrington	Super League VI 2001	24	5	-				-	20	8	14	2	33.33%
Overall	1989-2001	?	39	0				0	156	?	?	?	?
English League Career - By Team
Team	Years	App	T	G			GK %	FG	Pts	W	L	D	Win %
Sheffield Eagles	1989-90	?	5	-				-	20	?	?	?	?
Castleford	1991-96	?	25	-				-	100	?	?	?	?
Warrington	2000-01	59	9	-				-	36	27	30	2	45.76%
Overall	1989-2001	?	39	0				0	156	?	?	?	?

Last modified: Sun, 12 May 2013 15:09:42 +1000 (Sydney time)