Isaac Liu (born 26 April 1991) is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a lock and prop forward for the Leigh Leopards in the Super league and New Zealand at international level.
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Isaac Liu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 26 April 1991 Auckland, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 187 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 108 kg (17 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Lock, Prop | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Source: [1] As of 9 October 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
He has previously played for the Sydney Roosters in the NRL and won back-to-back NRL premierships with that club in 2018 and 2019. He represented Samoa earlier in his career at international level.
Background
editLiu was born in Auckland, New Zealand, and is of Samoan[2] and Niuean heritage.[citation needed]
He played his junior football for the Otahuhu Leopards before moving to Australia as a teen and attending Keebra Park State High School on the Gold Coast, Queensland.[3] He is of Samoan and Niuean descent.[citation needed]
In 2011, Liu signed with the Sydney Roosters. He played for the Roosters' NYC team in 2011, scoring 2 tries in 19 games.[4]
Playing career
editIn round 4 of the 2013 NRL season Liu made his NRL debut for the Roosters against the Parramatta Eels in a 50-0 victory at the Sydney Football Stadium. Liu made 15 appearances for the club in his debut season including the 40-14 preliminary final victory over Newcastle but he missed out on selection in the 2013 NRL Grand Final side which defeated Manly-Warringah.[5] In May 2014, Liu played for Samoa in the 2014 Pacific Rugby League International. He made headlines in the match after taking a massive shot by Fijian player Korbin Sims. Liu made 23 appearances for Easts in the 2014 NRL season as the club won the minor premiership. Liu played in the club's preliminary final defeat by South Sydney which ended their premiership defence.[6] On 7 October 2014, Liu was selected in the Samoan 24 man squad for the 2014 Four Nations series.[7][8] On 2 May 2015, Liu played for Samoa in the Polynesian Cup against Tonga. In the 2015 NRL season, Liu made 26 appearances as the Sydney Roosters won their third consecutive minor premiership. Liu played in the club's preliminary final loss against Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium.[9]
On 21 July 2017, Liu played his 100th First grade game against Newcastle, in this game he scored a try as the Roosters won the match 28-4 at the Sydney Football Stadium. Liu made a total of 22 appearances for Easts in the 2017 NRL season as the club finished 2nd on the table and reached the preliminary final before suffering a shock defeat by North Queensland.[10] On 5 October 2017, Liu was named in New Zealand Rugby League world cup squad. Liu made 26 appearances for Easts in the 2018 NRL season as they won the minor premiership and reached the 2018 NRL Grand Final against Melbourne. Liu played from the bench as Easts defeated Melbourne 21-6 claiming their 14th premiership.[11] Liu made 24 appearances for the Sydney Roosters in the 2019 NRL season as the club reached the 2019 NRL Grand Final against Canberra. The club would go on to win 14-8 with Liu starting at prop. It was the club's second consecutive premiership victory and Liu's second as a player.[12]
Liu played 19 games for the Sydney Roosters in the 2020 NRL season. The club reached the finals but were eliminated by Canberra at the Sydney Cricket Ground.[13] On 7 July 2021, Liu signed a contract to join the Gold Coast for the start of the 2022 season. Liu played 26 games for the Sydney Roosters in the 2021 NRL season as the club reached the finals but were eliminated in the second week by Manly.[14]
2022
editLiu played a total of 23 games for the Gold Coast in the 2022 NRL season as the club finished 13th on the table.[15]
2023
editLiu played a total of 21 matches for the Gold Coast in the 2023 NRL season as the club finished 14th on the table.[16]
2024
editLiu played a total of 23 matches for the Gold Coast in the 2024 season as the club again finished 14th on the table. On 9 September 2024, it was announced that Liu had been released by the club on compassionate grounds.[17][18]
On 9 Oct 2024 it was reported that he had signed for Leigh Leopards in the Super League on a 2-year deal.[19]
Statistics
edit| Year | Team | Games | Tries | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Sydney Roosters | 15 | ||
| 2014 | 23 | 2 | 8 | |
| 2015 | 26 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2016 | 22 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2017 | 22 | 2 | 8 | |
| 2018 | 26 | 5 | 20 | |
| 2019 | 24 | 2 | 8 | |
| 2020 | 19 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2021 | 26 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2022 | Gold Coast Titans | 23 | ||
| 2023 | 23 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2024 | 23 | |||
| 2025 | Leigh Leopards | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 272 | 16 | 64 |
source: [20]
References
edit- ^ Shawn Dollin and Andrew Ferguson (25 October 2015). "Isaac Lui". rugbyleagueproject.org.
- ^ Thomas Airey (12 March 2020). "N.R.L. kicks off with Samoans making up over 16% of playing squads". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
- ^ "Does Keerba Parks Footy Program Work? Here's Proof!". Archived from the original on 31 May 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ^ [1] Archived 18 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Sydney Roosters surge past Knights and into grand final". The Guardian. 28 September 2013.
- ^ "South Sydney Rabbitohs beat Sydney Roosters 32-22 in NRL preliminary final at Sydney's Olympic stadium". ABC News. 26 September 2014.
- ^ "Toa Samoa name Four Nations squad". NRL - The official site of the National Rugby League - NRL.com. 7 October 2014.
- ^ "Toa Samoa name Four Nations squad". NRL - Zero Tackle. Archived from the original on 3 February 2016.
- ^ Connolly, Paul (25 September 2015). "Brisbane win through to NRL grand final – as it happened". The Guardian.
- ^ "North Queensland Cowboys in another NRL grand final after beating Sydney Roosters 29-16 at SFS". ABC News. 23 September 2017.
- ^ Connolly, Paul (30 September 2018). "NRL grand final 2018: Sydney Roosters v Melbourne Storm - as it happened". The Guardian.
- ^ "Sydney Roosters beat Canberra Raiders to win NRL Grand Final". BBC Sport.
- ^ "'More than a team': Ricky's resilient Raiders keep the dream alive". www.nrl.com. 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Isaac Liu joins Gold Coast Titans for 2022". www.sportingnews.com. 7 July 2021.
- ^ "Titans' million-dollar man goes missing as Holbrook rues costly mistake: Brutal Review". www.foxsports.com.au. 8 September 2022.
- ^ "NRL 2023: Gold Coast Titans season review". www.sportingnews.com. 5 September 2023.
- ^ Chalk, Ethan Lee (9 September 2024). "Gold Coast confirm departure of two-time premiership winner". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
- ^ St John, Mark (8 September 2024). "Titans release forward on compassionate grounds as veteran farewelled — Off-season Central". Fox Sports. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
- ^ Callum Walker (9 October 2024). "New Zealand international Isaac Liu makes Super League move". Total RL.
- ^ "Isaac Liu - Playing Career - RLP". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 9 September 2024.