NRL 2024: Dolphins star Isaiya Katoa shuts down potential Penrith Panthers return
Isaiya Katoa quit Penrith because he was stuck behind superstars Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai. Now the Dolphins sensation has made a call on a potential Panthers return.
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Rookie sensation Isaiya Katoa has closed the door on a potential return to Penrith to replace Jarome Luai and declared he wants to ink a new deal with the Dolphins.
Katoa is gearing up for his second season in first grade following his breakout 2023 campaign with NRL newcomers the Dolphins.
Katoa, 19, rocketed from high school graduate to a starting spot in the Dolphins’ historic first NRL team last year after beating journeyman Anthony Milford to the Redcliffe team’s No. 6 jersey.
Coach Wayne Bennett had no hesitations thrusting Katoa into the NRL furnace from the get-go and the Tongan international punched out 22 games in an impressive rookie season.
Now Katoa is gearing up for a bigger and better 2024 premiership campaign – one he hopes will deliver the Dolphins their first taste of the NRL finals.
And he has no plans to quit the club and return to Penrith following the defection of NSW Origin five-eighth Luai to the Tigers from 2025.
Katoa came through Penrith’s junior development system, but decided to leave the Panthers given he faced being stuck behind NRL superstar Nathan Cleary and Luai in the halves pecking order.
He has made a home at Redcliffe, with his family recently relocating to the region, and wants to remain at the Dolphins beyond his current contract, which expires at the end of 2025.
“I’ve loved it at the Dolphins,” Katoa said.
“I had everything I needed at Penrith. I didn’t have to move away from home. It was a massive decision to make but I think it’s paid off.
“I’ve been able to come here and get a head start on my career learning under the best coach in Wayne Bennett. There’s nothing you could want more as a young kid finishing school than to come into a professional environment and be coached by the best.
“There’s never been any regrets. I still watch the Penrith boys and they’ve gone on to win three premierships in a row which is pretty incredible.
“But at the same time I’m loving the Dolphins, learning here and playing footy here. There was no regret from me, even with Penrith losing a lot of key players.
“I’m staying at the Dolphins and I love the Dolphins.”
Katoa was regarded as one of the NRL’s best emerging talents when the Dolphins snuck under the guard of Penrith and snapped up his signature ahead of their foundation season.
If he remained at Penrith, who essentially banished him after he signed with the Dolphins, Katoa could have been part of the squad that clinched a third straight NRL title last year.
However it’s unlikely he would have racked up 22 games of NRL experience and progressed his career like he did at the Dolphins.
While Bennett will stand down as head coach at the end of this season and be replaced by assistant Kristian Woolf, who is also Tonga’s head coach, Katoa has no plans to leave Redcliffe.
“I’ve loved the club ever since I’ve moved here. It’s a great club and community, the fans are awesome,” he said.
“I’ve had a good relationship with ‘Woolfy’ as an assistant coach at Dolphins and head coach with Tonga, but I know I have to earn his trust to continue after this year.
“If there’s any chance of me staying at the Dolphins I’ll be taking it. It’s been an incredible year so far and I can’t wait to see what we can do at the Dolphins.”
Katoa’s rookie season was a rollercoaster as the Dolphins experienced the highs and lows of life in the NRL.
Few moments can beat the Dolphins’ memorable round 1 win against the Roosters at Suncorp Stadium as they kicked off their NRL existence with a three-game winning streak.
But the rigours of a demanding NRL season took a toll on the Dolphins, and Katoa, as the early enthusiasm was crushed by a string of injuries, suspensions and losses in the second half of the year.
A teenage Katoa also felt the physical demand of first grade and was managed by Bennett in the back end.
“I’ve always heard about longevity in the game and recovery being a massive part of being a footy player but I didn’t realise until it actually happened to me,” Katoa said.
“From rounds one to 10 I was feeling awesome, really fresh, and the older boys were telling me to wait until it caught up with me. We got to about round 20 and I was starting to feel it.
“We played in Bundy (23-22 loss to Bulldogs) and Wayne said ‘I’m going to give you a rest this week. I’ve noticed there’s some effort areas you’re lacking’.
“I thought he was just dropping me from the team, but I came back the next week and was so fresh. I had all the energy in the world.”
Despite the promise he was showing as a young playmaker last year, Bennett was at times reluctant to heap public praise on Katoa.
He has seen enough young guns crumble under the pressure of the NRL and inflated opinions of themselves.
“I don’t want the media attention, so for him to do that was huge,” Katoa said.
“There’s already a lot of pressure coming out of school and going straight into a professional environment.
“He knows how to deal with the media. The last thing young kids coming through need is pressure from the media.
“It was awesome he looked after me from that aspect. He kept me grounded.”
Katoa will be on the field at Suncorp Stadium on March 10 when the Dolphins kick off their second NRL season against the Cowboys in a Queensland derby.
Whether he starts at five-eighth or halfback remains to be seen, but he is excited about what 2024 holds and believes the Dolphins will be in the finals mix.
“We are a fresh team but we don’t use that as an excuse to sit in the bottom eight,” he said.
“If anything, we’re using it as motivation and we have hopes to make the top eight this year.
“What we’re building at the Dolphins is incredible. It’s going to take a few years and we know we’ve got to be patient.
“But we’ve ramped up training a fair bit compared to last year and we’re heading in the right direction.”
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