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| Born | 19 May 1992 Auckland, New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 189 cm (6 ft 2 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 109 kg (17 st 2 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Second-row | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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As of 6 January 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Felise Kaufusi (born 19 May 1992) is a professional rugby league footballer from New Zealand who plays as a second-rower for the Dolphins in the National Rugby League (NRL), and has played for Tonga and Australia at international level.
He previously played for the Melbourne Storm and won the 2017 NRL Grand Final and 2020 NRL Grand Finals with them. Kaufusi has also played for the Queensland Maroons.
Kaufusi was born in Auckland, New Zealand, and is of Tongan and Niuean descent. He is the younger brother of Antonio and older brother of Patrick.[4][5]
At the age of seven years, Felise moved to Australia and was educated at Shalom Catholic College, Bundaberg. He played junior football for the Bundaberg Brothers before being signed by the North Queensland Cowboys.[6]
From 2010 to 2012, Kaufusi played for the North Queensland Cowboys' NYC team,[7][8] including their 2011 NYC Grand Final 30-31 golden point extra time loss to the New Zealand Warriors.[9] In 2013, he moved on to the Cowboys' Queensland Cup team, Northern Pride RLFC.[10] The following year, Kaufusi played for the Queensland Residents against the New South Wales Residents.[11]
In Round 1 of the 2015 NRL season, Kaufusi made his NRL debut for the Melbourne Storm against the St. George Illawarra Dragons, playing off the interchange bench in the 12-4 win at Jubilee Oval.[12][13] In Round 4 against the North Queensland Cowboys, Kaufusi scored his first NRL career try in the Storm’s 18-17 loss at 1300SMILES Stadium.[14] On 2 May 2015, he played for Tonga against Samoa in the Polynesian Cup.[15] On 2 July 2015, Kaufusi re-signed with the Storm on a two-year contract.[16]
On 7 May 2016, Kaufusi played for Tonga against Samoa in the 2016 Polynesian Cup.[17] On 6 July, he was named as 18th man for Queensland in Game 3 of the 2016 State of Origin series.[18] Kaufusi was named as 18th man for the Storm in their 2016 NRL Grand Final clash against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks but didn’t play in the 12-14 loss.[19] Kaufusi finished the 2016 NRL season having played in twenty-one matches and scoring four tries for the Storm.
On 21 April 2017, Kaufusi re-signed with the Storm to the end of the 2019 season.[20] On 6 May 2017, he played for Tonga against Fiji in the 2017 Pacific Test, where he started at second-row in the 26-24 win at Campbelltown Stadium.[21] During the season, Kaufusi took over the void second-row position from the departed Kevin Proctor and was instrumental for the Storm to their run leading up to the Finals series when they won the Minor Premiership trophy.[22] In the Storm’s 2017 NRL Grand Final 34-6 victory against the North Queensland Cowboys, Kaufusi started at second-row and scored a try.[23][24] Kaufusi finished the 2017 NRL season having played in all of the Storm’s twenty-seven matches and scored nine tries.Two days after the Grand Final win, Kaufusi was selected in the Kangaroos squad for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup.[25][26] On 3 November 2017, Kaufusi made his test debut for Australia against France, where he played off the interchange bench in the 52-6 win at Canberra Stadium.[27][28]
In Round 1 of 2018, Kaufusi suffered a hamstring injury being sidelined for three weeks. In May, he signed a two-year extension to remain with the Melbourne Storm.[29]
Kaufusi made his debut for Queensland in Game 1 of the 2018 State of Origin series, starting at second-row in all three games. He then featured in the Melbourne Storm's grand final loss to the Sydney Roosters. Kaufusi played in twenty-one games for the Storm in 2018, scoring five tries. He also played for Australia in the end of season tests vs New Zealand and Tonga.[30]
Kaufusi played twenty-five games for Melbourne in the 2019 NRL season. Although Melbourne finished as minor premiers, they were defeated by the Sydney Roosters in the preliminary final.[31] In the 2020 NRL season, Kaufusi played twenty-one games for Melbourne including the club's 2020 NRL Grand Final victory over Penrith.[32] In round 2 of the 2021 NRL season against Parramatta, Kaufusi was placed on report suspended for three games after tackling Parramatta player Ryan Matterson, who subsequently missed the following five matches.[33] In round 10, Kaufusi was placed on report for tripping a St. George Illawarra but later beat the charge, and was then selected for Queensland to play in the 2021 State of Origin series.[34]
Kaufusi was selected by Queensland for game one of the 2022 State of Origin series. In game two, he scored a try but was later sin binned for a professional foul during Queensland's 12-44 loss against New South Wales.[35] Kaufusi played twenty-one games for Melbourne in the 2022 NRL season including the club's elimination final loss to Canberra.[36]
In round 1 of the 2023 NRL season, Kaufusi made his club debut for the Dolphins[37][38] in their inaugural game in the national competition, defeating the Sydney Roosters 28-18 at Suncorp Stadium.[39] After a late tackle in round 3 against the Newcastle Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium, Kaufusi was suspended on a dangerous contact charge for the next four games (rounds 4-7).[40] In round 10 against the Cronulla Sutherland Sharks at Suncorp Stadium, Kaufusi captained the Dolphins in their 36-16 victory at Suncorp Stadium.[41] In the second minute of round 12 against the Melbourne Storm at Suncorp Stadium, Kaufusi was sin-binned for a grade-two careless high tackle [42] and suspended for the next three rounds.[43]
Internationally, Kaufusi was selected to represent Tonga in a three-Test series against England that commenced at St Helens' Totally Wicked Stadium on 22 October 2023.[44]
Melbourne Storm