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| Born | (1996-06-05)5 June 1996 (age 28) Christchurch, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 95 kg (14 st 13 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Wing, Fullback | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source:[1] As of 22 March 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Jamayne Isaako (born 5 June 1996) is a New Zealand professionalrugby league footballer who plays as a goal-kickingwinger for theDolphins in theNational Rugby League (NRL). At the2023 Dally M Awards, Isaako received theKen Irvine Medal for being the "Top Tryscorer of the Year". He was also the "Top Pointscorer of the Year", and named as Best Winger of the Year along withDallin Watene-Zelezniak from theNew Zealand Warriors.
In the NRL, Isaako has previously played as afullback for theGold Coast Titans and on the wing for theBrisbane Broncos. At international level, he has played for bothNew Zealand andSamoa.
Isaako was born inChristchurch, New Zealand, and is ofSamoan andTokelauan descent. He hails from the villages of Falelatai,Lalomanu and Lona Fagaloa. Isaako played junior rugby league for theAranui Eagles.[2]
In 2014 and 2015, Isaako played at five-eighth for theCronulla-Sutherland Sharks'NYC team.[3] In May 2015, he played for theJunior Kiwis against theJunior Kangaroos in their 34–20 loss atCbus Super Stadium.[4]
In 2016, Isaako joined theBrisbane Broncos Under 20's team in round 9.[5] In May 2016, he played for the Junior Kiwis against the Junior Kangaroos for a second consecutive year.[6]
In 2017, Isaako graduated to the BroncosQueensland Cup team,Souths Logan Magpies. During the season, Isaako's form for the Magpies prompted Broncos coachWayne Bennett to debut him in NRL round 19 against theNewcastle Knights, starting at fullback in the 34–22 win atHunter Stadium.[7][8] This was Isaako's only appearance for the Broncos during the2017 NRL season. However, he continued in the Queensland Cup and was named as fullback in the Intrust Super Cup team of the season.[9]
In round 1 of the2018 NRL season against theSt George Illawarra Dragons, Isaako starred as a winger for the Broncos in their 34–12 loss atJubilee Stadium.[10] In round 3, the Broncos defeated theWests Tigers 9–7 atCampbelltown Stadium. In total, Isaako kicked four penalty goals, including one in golden point extra time, and a field goal. .[11] In round 6 against theNew Zealand Warriors, Isaako scored his first two NRL tries in the Broncos 27–18 win atMt Smart Stadium.[12] In Round 11 against theSydney Roosters, Isaako scored two tries and kicked four goals; one of the tries came from nothing after he was pressured from Roosters defenders after an attempt to kick a field goal, so he stepped around defenders in a razzle dazzle fashion and scored a magnificent try to win the match 28–22 for the Broncos with two minutes to go atSuncorp Stadium.[13]
On 24 June 2018, Isaako made his international debut forNew Zealand againstEngland in the historical test match set inDenver, USA, starting on the wing and kicking three goals in the 36–18 loss atMile High Stadium.[14][15]
After showing excellent form for the Broncos in the NRL, Isaako started at fullback during rounds 19–21, and the incumbent fullbackDarius Boyd was shifted to centre. Isaako showed some success as a fullback but went back to the wing for the rest of season.[16][17] On 19 July 2018, Isaako extended his contract with the Broncos to the end of the 2024 season, after rejecting a rich offer from theSydney Roosters because he ultimately believed the Broncos offered the best opportunity to pursue his long-term positional goal of playing fullback.[18][19] Isaako finished his exciting 2018 NRL season with him playing in all of the Broncos twenty-five matches, scoring eleven tries and kicking ninety-seven goals, being the club's highest point scorer with 239 points. On 26 September 2018, at the2018 Dally M Awards, Isaako received the Rookie of the Year award and his magnificent match winning try against theSydney Roosters in round 11 was named as the Try of the Year.[20]
On 1 October 2018, Isaako was named in the New Zealand squad for their tour ofGreat Britain.[21] He played in one match, which was the last of the three matches against England, playing on the wing in the 34–0 win atElland Road inLeeds.[22]
In the2019 NRL season, uncharacteristic errors crept into his game as the Broncos struggled with a 2–6 start leading up to the round 9 Magic Round match against theManly-Warringah Sea Eagles. Isaako as wing andJames Roberts as centre were dropped from the team for defensive and handling issues.[23][24][25] Isaako returned to his wing spot the following week against the 2018 premiers, theSydney Roosters, and kicked three goals in the much needed 15–10 win atSuncorp Stadium.[26]
In the2020 NRL season, Isaako played only ten games for Brisbane. Due to his father's death in New Zealand andCOVID-19 quarantine restrictions, he was unable to return to Australia and play for the second half of the season.[27] In round 8 of the2021 NRL season, Isaako scored two tries and kicked five goals as Brisbane came from 22–0 down to defeat the Gold Coast 36–28.[28] At the start of2022 NRL season, Isaako played one match and kicked two goals for Brisbane.
On 22 March, Isaako signed a one-year deal to join theGold Coast Titans for the remainder of theseason. It was initially believed that Isaako would sign a short-term contract with Parramatta but instead chose to sign with the Gold Coast club as he wanted to remain in Queensland prior to commencing with the Dolphins for their inaugural NRL season in 2023.[29]In round 10, Isaako scored the winning try for Gold Coast in their golden point victory overSt. George Illawarra which ended a five-game losing streak.[30]
Isaako commenced a three-year contract with theDolphins in2023,[31] and played in every match that year. Even though the Dolphins did not qualify for the finals, Isaako recorded both the highest number of NRL tries and points in the 2023 competition; a feat last achieved byCanberra Raiders goal-kickingcentreMal Meninga in 1990.[32]
In round 1 of the2023 NRL season, Isaako made his club debut for theDolphins on the wing in their inaugural NRL game. He scored two tries and kicked four goals as the new club pulled off a major upset defeating theSydney Roosters 28–18 atSuncorp Stadium.[33] In round 2, Isaako kicked four goals in the Dolphins 20–14 defeat of theCanberra Raiders atKayo Stadium.[34] In round 3, Isaako scored two tries and kicked four goals in a 36–20 victory over theNewcastle Knights atMcDonald Jones Stadium.[35] In round 4, Isaako kicked two goals in the inaugural "Battle for Brisbane" derby at Suncorp Stadium, which the Brisbane Broncos won 18–12.[36] In round 5, he scored one try and kicked two goals in the Dolphins 12–38 loss to St George Illawarra Dragons atWIN Stadium.[37]
In round 6, Isaako kicked four goals and scored his first career hat-trick in the Dolphins 32–22 victory against theNorth Queensland Cowboys atQueensland Country Bank Stadium.[38] In round 7, he kicked three goals in the Dolphins 14–36 loss toSouth Sydney Rabbitohs at Suncorp Stadium.[39] In round 8, Isaako kicked four goals in the Dolphins 28–26 victory over theGold Coast Titans at Suncorp Stadium.[40] In round 9, Isaako kicked five goals in the Dolphins 30–31 loss to theCanberra Raiders at McDonalds Park,Wagga Wagga.[41] In round 10 against theCronulla Sutherland Sharks at Suncorp Stadium, Isaako kicked six goals for the Dolphins in their 36–16 victory at Suncorp Stadium.[42] In round 12, he scored two tries and kicked two goals for the Dolphins in their 16–24 loss to the Melbourne Storm at Suncorp Stadium.[43] Round 13 was Isaako's one-hundredth NRL game; he scored two tries and kicked five goals for the Dolphins in their 26–12 victory over the St. George Illawarra Dragons at Kayo Stadium.[44][45]In round 23, Isaako scored ahat-trick in the club's 30–28 loss to theNewcastle Knights atOptus Stadium,Perth.[46]
By the end of the 2023 season, Isaako had scored twenty-four tries and kicked seventy-three goals with a goal conversion rate of 72.3% and a tackle efficiency of 76.9%.[47] At the Dolphins' Inaugural Presentation Ball held atBrisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, he was awarded the Arthur Beetson Medal Player of the Year as well as the Best Back, the Most Consistent, and the Players' Player awards for 2023.[48] At the2023 Dally M Awards held atRoyal Randwick Racecourse[49] in Sydney, Isaako was awarded theKen Irvine Medal for being the "Top Tryscorer of the Year", named as the "Top Pointscorer of the Year" and Winger of the Year.
In October, Isaako was selected to represent New Zealand in the2023 Pacific Championships.[50] He finished the tournament with forty-two points across three Tests, including eighteen points in New Zealand's 30–0 win over Australia in the Pacific Championship Cup final atWaikato Stadium inHamilton, New Zealand.[51] Isaako also represented New Zealand in all three of their2024 Pacific Championships matches. He scored four tries and kicked twelve goals for a total of forty points.
In 2023, the Dolphins extended Isaako's contract until the end of 2026.[52] In round 9 of the2024 NRL season,he scored ahat-trick and kicked four goals in the Dolphins 28–26 victory over North Queensland.[53][54]Isaako played every game for the Dolphins in the 2024 NRL season and finished as the club's top point scorer and the second highest NRL point-scorer for that year.[55][56]
Individual
Team
| Season | Team | Appearances | Tries | Goals | Goal-kicking Percentage | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 NRL season |  Brisbane Broncos | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2018 NRL season | 25 | 11 | 97/118 | 82.20% | 1 | 239 | |
| 2019 NRL season | 22 | 4 | 53/67 | 79.10% | 1 | 123 | |
| 2020 NRL season | 10 | 3 | 16/22 | 72.73% | 0 | 44 | |
| 2021 NRL season | 18 | 6 | 50/63 | 79.37% | 0 | 124 | |
| 2022 NRL season | 1 | 0 | 1/2 | 50.00% | 0 | 2 | |
| 2022 NRL season |  Gold Coast Titans | 11 | 3 | 15/18 | 83.33% | 0 | 42 |
| 2023 NRL season |  Dolphins | 24 | 24 | 73/101 | 72.28% | 2 | 244 |
| 2024 NRL season | 24 | 12 | 87/109 | 79.82% | 1 | 223[60] | |
| 2025 NRL season | 2(Rd 3) | 2 | 6/9 | 66.67% | 0 | 20 | |
| Totals | 138 | 65 | 397 | 5 | 1059 |
Isaako and his partner Abby Sutherland, a former legal secretary fromMelbourne, have two children. On 26 October 2018, their son Isaiah Jamayne Isaako was born atMater Mother's Hospital inSouth Brisbane, Australia,[62] and their daughter Iylah was born on 23 February 2021.