Jacob Saifiti


Jacob Saifiti is a Fiji international rugby league footballer who plays as a and forward for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL.

Background

Saifiti was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. He is of Fijian descent and moved to the Central Coast at a young age. He is the identical twin brother of Knights teammate Daniel Saifiti.
Saifiti played his junior rugby league for the Terrigal Sharks and The Entrance Tigers, before joining the Newcastle Knights in 2015.

Playing career

2015

In 2015, Saifiti played for the Newcastle Knights' NYC team. On 2 May, he played for Fiji against Papua New Guinea, alongside his twin brother Daniel. On 27 September, he played in the Knights' 2015 New South Wales Cup Grand Final win over the Wyong Roos. During the year, he re-signed with the Knights on a two-year contract.

2016

In round 1 of the 2016 NRL season, Saifiti made his NRL debut for the Knights against the Gold Coast Titans, playing alongside his brother Daniel, becoming the first twins in Australian rugby league's 108-year history to debut together. On 12 May, he and his brother extended their contracts with the Knights from the end of 2017 until the end of 2018. He made a total of 18 appearances for Newcastle in his debut season as the club finished last on the table.

2017

Saifiti played 21 games for the Knights in the 2017 season, before having his contract extended until the end of 2020. Newcastle would finish bottom of the table for a third straight season.

2018

Saifiti was limited to only eight games for Newcastle in the 2018 NRL season as the club finished 11th on the table.

2019

Saifiti played 7 games for Newcastle in the 2019 NRL season as the club finished 11th on the table.

Controversy

On 2 December 2018, Saifiti was found unconscious and with a broken leg after a fight with Dane Cordner, the brother of NSW captain and Sydney Roosters player Boyd Cordner. Saifiti was later cleared of any wrongdoing but was fined $50,000 by Newcastle over the incident.