Kirisi Kuridrani (born 12 December 1991), formerly Kirisi Nasiganiyavi, is an Australian rugby union player of Fijian descent. He is currently signed to Japanese club Honda Heat and previously played for the Queensland Reds in Super Rugby. His usual position is wing.
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| Birth name | Kirisi Nasiganiyavi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 12 December 1991 [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Brisbane, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 99 kg (15 st 8 lb) [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Ipswich Grammar School Marsden State High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | Nemani Nadolo (brother) Tevita Kuridrani (cousin) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Family and early life
editKirisi Nasiganiyavi was born in Brisbane, where his father Isei Nasiganiyavi played rugby for Queensland. He is the younger brother of Nemani Nadolo (who was named Ratu Nasiganiyavi before he adopted their mother's maiden name of Nadolo in 2009)[2][3] and a cousin of Tevita Kuridrani;[4] in 2011 he adopted the Kuridrani family name.
During his junior career he was selected for several representative teams, including Queensland Under-16s.[2] He attended Marsden State High School and Ipswich Grammar, and represented Queensland at the Australian Schools Rugby Championships in 2008 and 2009.[5][6]
Rugby career
editIn 2010, he played colts rugby for GPS Old Boys and was chosen for the Brisbane Under-19 team later that year.[7] He was selected for the Fiji Under-20 team and played in the 2010 IRB Junior World Championship in Argentina,[8] and scored a try against New Zealand in the opening pool game.
Chris Kuridrani briefly switched codes at the start of 2011. He played rugby league in the Toyota Cup for the Brisbane Broncos for five rounds before returning to play Premier Rugby with GPS and train with the Queensland Reds squad.[1][9] He was selected as an injury replacement for the Australia Under-20 team at the 2011 IRB Junior World Championship in Italy, and scored a try in the semi-final against New Zealand.[10][11]
He was a member of the ARU's National Academy in 2013,[12][13] and participated in the Pacific Rugby Cup, including playing one match for the Brisbane Academy against his brother, Nemani Nadolo, who played for Fiji Warriors.[14]
He currently plays for Counties Manukau in the Mitre 10 Cup.[15]
On the 12 November 2019 he was selected in the Highlanders squad for the 2020 Super Rugby tournament.
Reference list
edit- ^ a b c d "Chris Kuridrani Broncos U20 Profile". Yahoo Sport NZ. 2011. Archived from the original on 14 November 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
- ^ a b "Sanday raises a profile". Fiji Times. 24 July 2008. Archived from the original on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
- ^ Proszenko, Adrian (15 November 2009). "Nadolo no longer a tongue-twisting hulk - now he's just huge". Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
- ^ "Rasolea, 17, makes her mark". Fiji Sun. News. 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
- ^ "Queensland Schoolboys Teams 2008". QRFSU. Australian Rugby Union. 19 July 2008. Archived from the original on 18 July 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
- ^ "Queensland Schoolboys Teams 2009". QRFSU. Australian Rugby Union. 13 September 2009. Archived from the original on 13 September 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
- ^ "Brisbane teams for City v Country carnival" (Press release). Queensland Rugby. 24 August 2010. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
- ^ "FRU Annual Report 2010" (PDF). Fiji Rugby. 2010. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF 3.3 MB) on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
- ^ Tucker, Jim (6 June 2011). "Bloodied Reds are running out of numbers". Courier Mail. News. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
- ^ "England to face NZ in JWC Final". Planet Rugby. 22 June 2011. Archived from the original on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
- ^ "ARU Annual Report 2011". Australian Rugby Union. 2011. p. 38. Archived from the original on 23 January 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
- ^ "Australia's next generation set to face Reds College XV" (Press release). Australian Rugby Union. 13 April 2013. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
- ^ "Reds announce squad for Super Rugby season opener v Brumbies" (Press release). Queensland Rugby. 14 April 2013. Retrieved 30 May 2013.
- ^ "Nadolo to start for Fiji Warriors". Sydney, Australia: Tawakilagi. 7 March 2013. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
- ^ "2020 Super Rugby Representatives". Counties Manukau. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
External links
edit- statistics on It's Rugby