Abigail Roache
| Date of birth | 12 September 2000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Auckland, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 167 cm (5 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 70 kg (11 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rugby league career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre, Five-eighth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: RLP As of 19 December 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Abigail Roache (born 12 September 2000) is a New Zealand professional rugby league player who plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL Women's Premiership.
Primarily a centre, she has represented New Zealand and previously played for the Newcastle Knights. In rugby union, she played for the Chiefs Manawa in Super Rugby Aupiki and provincially for the Auckland Storm.
Background
[edit]Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Roache is the younger sister of former NRL player, Nathaniel Roache.[1] She tore her ACL in both knees before turning 20 and had further surgery to repair meniscus injuries.[1]
Rugby career
[edit]Rugby union
[edit]Roache was named in Auckland Storm's squad for the 2019 Farah Palmer Cup season.[2] She joined Chiefs Manawa for the 2023 Super Rugby Aupiki season.[3][4]
Rugby league
[edit]In 2022, Roache was awarded the Cathy Friend Women's Player of the Year for her outstanding performance for the Richmond Roses in the Auckland Rugby League competition.[5][6]
Roache was initially left out of the Kiwi Ferns squad for the delayed 2021 Rugby League World Cup, but received a late call-up when Kararaina Wira-Kohu withdrew due to a torn calf days before the tournament.[7][8][9][1] She made her Kiwi Ferns test debut on 10 November 2022 in their pool game loss to the Jillaroos at the World Cup.[5][1] She also featured in her sides 20–6 semi-final victory over England.[10][1] She started in the final, where the Kiwi Ferns lost 54–4 to the Jillaroos.[11][12][13]
In May 2023, Roache signed a 2-year contract with NRL Women's Premiership side Newcastle Knights.[14] In round 1 of the 2023 NRLW season, she made her NRLW debut for the Knights against the St. George Illawarra Dragons,[15] scoring a try in the Knights' 32–16 win.[16]
In October 2023, Roache played at centre in the Knights' 24-18 Grand Final win over the Gold Coast Titans.[17]
After 20 games with the Knights, Roache parted ways with the club at the end of the 2024 season.[18]
On 18 December 2024, she joined the North Queensland Cowboys on a three-year contract.[19]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Rosser, Corey (16 November 2022). "'Epitome of resilience': Brother's example key to Roache's Ferns dream". National Rugby League. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ "Auckland Storm looking to bounce back from disappointing 2018 campaign". Provincial Rugby. 21 August 2019. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Perry, James (16 January 2023). "Chiefs Manawa add flair and experience to squad ahead of Super Rugby Aupiki". Māori Television. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Dermody, Jessica (16 January 2023). "Super Rugby Aupiki 'fresh challenge' for Sevens star". 1 News. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ a b "Roache to make her Kiwi Ferns debut". New Zealand Rugby League. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ "Abigail Roache and Eiden Ackland receive 2022 top honours". www.aucklandleague.co.nz. 27 August 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ "Wira-Kohu ruled out of Kiwi Ferns RLWC Squad". Rugby League Planet. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ McFadden, Suzanne (19 November 2022). "From Manurewa to Manchester, Kiwi Ferns go hard". Newsroom. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Miller, Scott (13 November 2022). "2022 Rugby League World Cup: Aotearoa Kiwi Ferns vs England Semi-Final Preview". The Niche Cache. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Walker, Callum (14 November 2022). "England's World Cup Final hopes smashed as New Zealand register impressive 20-6 win". TotalRL.com. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Martin, Paul (17 November 2022). "What are the teams for the women's Rugby League World Cup final?". www.rlwc2021.com. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Chapman, Grant (18 November 2022). "Rugby League World Cup: One change to Kiwi Ferns for final against Australia Jillaroos". Newshub. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ Mascord, Steve (19 November 2022). "Australia blitzes Kiwi Ferns in World Cup final". rugbyleaguehub.com. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ^ "Host of international and NRLW experience bolsters Knights". Newcastle Knights. 10 May 2023.
- ^ "Knights v Dragons Round 1 NRLW Team List". Newcastle Knights. 18 July 2023.
- ^ "Knights kick off new season with win over the Dragons". Newcastle Knights. 22 July 2023.
- ^ "2023 Telstra Women's Premiership - Grand Final - Newcastle Knights (W) 24 def. Gold Coast Titans (W) 18 - RLP". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com.
- ^ "Kiwi Ferns duo join Cowboys". NQ Cowboys. 18 December 2024.