By Iain Payten
When Mark Nawaqanitawase first burst into the professional rugby ranks at the NSW Waratahs in 2020, it wasn’t so much remember the name – it was more a case of practice the name.
The surname of the flying winger, who has Fijian heritage, is so tricky to pronounce the Waratahs even made a funny social clip of his new teammates trying to nail it, with mostly predictable results. Some older mates were fine, other new ones had a shocker.
Most people, including coaches, resorted to just bypassing the surname and calling him “Marky Mark”. Four years of ever-increasing stardom in the 15-man game helped most in rugby come to grips with saying Nawaqanitawase, but now the tongue-twisting challenge is back again – for Roosters fans, players and rugby league commentators.
After making a code switch last month, Nawaqanitawase is set to make his NRL debut for the Roosters against old rivals South Sydney on Friday night. For the rugby league purists who don’t watch a second of rugby, there will be many questions about the 23-year-old ex-Wallaby – so here are some of the answers.
So, how do you pronounce Nawaqanitawase?
“Boys, it’s simple – Nawaqanitawase”, came Marky Mark’s explanation at the end of the Waratahs video.
The best approach is a phonetic breakdown ... and lots of practice. The secret is knowing the tricky “q” in the middle is actually pronounced as “ng” in a Fijian name.
So it’s: “Nuh – Wonga – Knee – Tar – Wahsee”.
Nuhwonga – Kneetar – Wahsee.
Get practising.
Will he handle the NRL’s big stage?
He has only been playing professional rugby league for a month but of all the challenges Nawaqanitawase will face in his NRL debut on Friday at Accor Stadium, handling the big stage shouldn’t be one of them.
Mark Nawaqanitawase scores a try against France.Credit: Getty
In his11 Tests as a Wallaby, Nawaqanitawase played in front of some huge crowds at some of the world’s most intimidating, and sold-out, stadiums: Stade de France in Paris (78,000), Aviva Stadium in Dublin (51,000) and Millenium Stadium in Cardiff (75,000). Last year, Nawaqanitawase played against the All Blacks in front of 83,944 at the MCG.
Throw in the Rugby World Cup and the Olympics, and atmosphere-related nerves shouldn’t be a problem.
But can he play?
The fact that astute judge Trent Robinson swooped to sign Nawaqanitawase as a replacement, of sorts, for Joseph Suaalii tells you a lot of what you need to know. And his form in three NSW Cup games fills in the rest.
Robinson watches more rugby than most league coaches, and even had Michael Cheika as an assistant. So he’d know what people in rugby know – Nawaqanitawase has a habit of rising to the occasion.
In only his third Test match, Nawaqanitawase scored two outstanding tries to steer the Wallabies to a come-from-behind win against Wales in Cardiff. And it quickly became common for the winger/fullback to be the go-to guy for both NSW and Australia when they needed an attacking breakthrough.
He was one of the Wallabies’ best at the dismal Rugby World Cup campaign last year.
In a handful of games for the Roosters in NSW Cup since switching codes post-Olympics, Nawaqanitawase has – unsurprisingly to rugby fans – looked assured and confident. He scored a try on debut, and has had some highlight reel moments in each of the games.
What are his strengths?
Mark Nawaqanitawase leaps high against Georgia in the Rugby World Cup.Credit: Getty
It’s a bit unfair to liken Nawaqanitawase to Israel Folau just yet, but he has spoken about the dual international as being a role model as far as playing style.
Nawaqanitawase is spring-loaded and exceptional in the air, and like Folau before him, the Wallabies and Waratahs built plays around giving him a one-on-one aerial contest.
Physically, Nawaqanitawase is well-equipped to handle the demands of the NRL, at 100kgs and 192cm, and with a reputation as one of the strongest in the weight room, too.
Nawaqanitawase’s size means he’s not in the same speed category as Josh Addo-Carr but he has enough to be a good finisher. His ability to pick intercepts, and to shift sideways, ride contact and offload are also strengths – but the question will be how much risk Robinson will allow him in the NRL.
How will rugby bosses view his debut?
Through fingers over the eyes. Nawaqanitawase opted to switch codes quickly late last year, in the wake of a dismal experience at the Rugby World Cup.
Rugby had had a chance to re-sign him earlier in the year but held off, and while they were disappointed to see him go, there was always going to be more sting-in-the-tail cost attached to poaching Suaalii on a massive amount of money. As other rugby stars asked for a similar pay-bump, RA had to actually trim their offers to others to pay for Suaalii.
In the end, the offers were similar from both codes and Nawaqanitawase went more for the challenge. But the onging cost of letting him go could still continue for rugby.
If Nawaqanitawase succeeds smoothly at the Roosters, it could see more NRL clubs sizing up Wallaby talent and furthermore, more Wallaby talent sizing up the NRL. Already Carter Gordon has followed in the same footsteps and signed with the Gold Coast.
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