Solomone Kata rugby player
Solomone Kata rugby player

Solomone Kata

3rd Dec 1994 1.77m/104kg Right Wing

A code hopping star, Solomone Kata was born in Neiafu, Tonga, and moved to New Zealand in 2011 on a rugby union scholarship at Sacred Heart College, Auckland.

The try-scoring machine represented Tonga u20s in the Junior World Championship before switching to rugby league in 2013, signing with the New Zealand Warriors.

Kata played for the Warriors Holden Cup team and was part of the side that lost the Grand Final 30–42 to the Penrith Panthers and in the 2014 Auckland Nines with the first-grade side, before returning to the under 20s competition.

In 2015, he broke into the Warriors senior NRL side with a league test debut not too far away as he played for Tonga against Samoa in the 2015 Polynesian Cup, playing at centre and kicking 2 goals in Tonga's 16–18 loss at Cbus Super Stadium.

Kata finished his debut year in the NRL with him playing in all of the Warriors 24 matches and being the top try scorer with 12 tries in the 2015 NRL season, while mid-year his contract was extended until the end of 2018.

Solomone Kata continued to shine for the Warriors scoring 45 tries in 93 matches for the side prior to a switch to the Storm in June of 2019.

He returned to union ahead of the 2020 Super Rugby season signing with the Brumbies.

Kata enjoyed a sensational start to his Super Rugby career dotting down five times and starting all six of the Brumbies matches before the season was brought to a halt in March 2020.

In August 2021, he re-signed with the club for the 2022 Super Rugby season.

He made his test debut for Tonga in rugby union on 6 November 2021 in a 69-3 loss to England as part of the Autumn Nations Series.

On August 2022, Kata signed for Premiership Rugby side Exeter Chiefs.

The following year he announced his signing with the Leicester Tigers in England's Premiership Rugby.

He has recently been included in Tonga's final training squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

S.C June 23

Career

275213_100002908945441_1598230740_n Tonga
Left Wing
2021 - present
leicester Leicester Tigers
Right Wing
2023 - present
brumbies ACT Brumbies
Right Wing
2019 - 2021
ARU-Crest Auckland
Right Wing
2021 - 2022
Moana Pasifika Rugby Logo Moana Pasifika Rugby
Right Wing
2021 - 2022
Sacred Heart College logo Sacred Heart College (Auckland)
Inside Centre
Exeter Chiefs Master Logo RGB White 2022-NoStar Exeter Chiefs
Right Wing
2022 - 2023