Phillip Sami
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Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 2 August 1997 Ipswich, Queensland, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 186 cm (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 97 kg (15 st 4 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Wing, Centre | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] As of 19 August 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Phillip Sami (born 2 August 1997) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a winger and centre for the Gold Coast Titans in the National Rugby League (NRL). Sami has also represented his home state, Queensland, in the State of Origin series.
Background
Sami was born in Ipswich, Queensland, to Samoan parents.[2]
He played his junior rugby league for the Springfield Panthers, Goodna Eagles, and for Eastern Suburbs Tigers. Sami attended Ipswich State High School.
Playing career
Early career
In 2015, Sami played for the Eastern Suburbs Tigers in the Mal Meninga Cup. In 2016 and 2017, he played for the Gold Coast Titans' NYC team.[3][4]
2017
On 31 May, he was selected in the Queensland under-20 rugby league team.[5]
In round 15 of the 2017 NRL season, Sami made his NRL debut for the Titans against the South Sydney Rabbitohs.[6][7] In September, he was named at centre in the NYC Team of the Year.[8]
2018
In round 4 of the 2018 season, he scored his first hat-trick of tries against the Brisbane Broncos, with the Gold Coast winning 26-14 at Suncorp Stadium.[9]
2019
In round 23 of the 2019 NRL season, Sami set a new record for the fastest Gold Coast Titans player in history by running 35.9 km/h in a chase-down of Josh Addo-Carr.
Sami made a total of 16 appearances for the Gold Coast in the 2019 NRL season as the club endured a horror year on and off the field. During the halfway mark of the season, head coach Garth Brennan was sacked by the club after a string of poor results. The Gold Coast managed to win only 4 games for the entire season and finished last claiming the Wooden Spoon.[10][11]
2020
Sami started the first five games of the year at fullback under new coach Justin Holbrook due to injuries by AJ Brimson and Tyrone Roberts. In round 4, Sami scored the match winning try against Wests Tigers in a 28-23 win from a Brian Kelly kick ending the Gold Coast's 364 day winning drought.[12] Sami debuted for Queensland in Origin 1 in Adelaide playing on the wing in a 18-14 win. Sami played game 2 as well, however was dropped for Origin 3 following a poor performance in game 2. [13]
2021
Sami played 18 games for the Gold Coast in the 2021 NRL season including the club's elimination final loss against the Sydney Roosters.[14]
2022
Sami played a total of 14 games for the Gold Coast and scored six tries in the 2022 NRL season as the club finished 13th on the table.[15]
2023
Sami played a total of 21 matches for the Gold Coast in the 2023 NRL season and scored 11 tries as the club finished 14th on the table.[16]
2024
Sami made 13 appearances for the Gold Coast in the 2024 NRL season as the club finished 14th on the table.[17]
Statistics
| Year | Team | Games | Tries | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 |  Gold Coast Titans
|
4 | 1 | 4 |
| 2018 | 23 | 14 | 56 | |
| 2019 | 15 | 6 | 24 | |
| 2020 | 13 | 7 | 28 | |
| 2021 | 18 | 6 | 24 | |
| 2022 | 14 | 6 | 24 | |
| 2023 | 21 | 11 | 44 | |
| 2024 | 13 | 5 | 20 | |
| Totals | 121 | 56 | 224 |
References
- ^ "Phillip Sami - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project.
- ^ Webeck, Tony (4 April 2018). "Representative fight looms for boom Titans rookie Phillip Sami". Fox Sports. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
- ^ "S". Nyc Database. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ Tim Costello (7 March 2017). "Holden Cup Under 20's NYC - 2017 Round 2". League Unlimited. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ NRL Digital Media. "Queensland Under 20s team". QRL. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ "Updated team lists: Rabbitohs v Titans". NRL.com. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ NRL Digital Media. "NRL LATE MAIL: Rabbitohs v". Titans. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ "2017 NYC Team of the Year - Zero Tackle". 4 September 2017. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
- ^ Ferguson, Shawn Dollin and Andrew. "NRL 2018 - Round 4 - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
- ^ "The Titans are full of 'hot air'. Their latest blunder proves it". Adelaide Now.
- ^ "Gold Coast Titans sack coach Garth Brennan". The Guardian.
- ^ "Holbrook win just the start for Gold Coast". www.nrl.com.
- ^ "State of Origin 2020: Series Player Ratings, NSW vs QLD, Blues vs Maroons, Nathan Cleary, Daly Cherry-Evans". Fox Sports. 20 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
- ^ "'He's taken it hard': Shattered Titans rally around Herbert after blowing win". www.nrl.com. 11 September 2021.
- ^ "Titans' million-dollar man goes missing as Holbrook rues costly mistake: Brutal Review". www.foxsports.com.au.
- ^ "NRL 2023: Gold Coast Titans season review". www.sportingnews.com.
- ^ "The Mole's end-of-season review: Titans 'perennial enigma' who went missing as Des Hasler 'hallmark' falls flat". www.nine.com.au.