Zachary Cini (born 24 May 2000) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a centre or winger for the Castleford Tigers in the Super League.
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Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Zachary Cini | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 24 May 2000 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 189 cm (6 ft 2 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 91 kg (14 st 5 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre, Wing, Fullback | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] As of 11 September 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background
editCini was born in Sydney and is of Maltese descent.
Cini played his junior rugby league for the Minchinbury Jets. He later said, "I grew up supporting the Tigers. I loved Benji in 2005 and I used to sit in the lounge room watching him on TV. When he played the grand final I was five and I used to go out into the yard and try to practise the Benji step."[2]
Playing career
editEarly career
editCini came through the Penrith Panthers junior system playing in their SG Ball championship winning team of 2018, he was educated at St Dominic's College, Penrith where he made the Australian Schoolboys rugby league team in that same year.[3]
2021
editCini was named to his debut in round 8 for the Tigers, starting on the wing against the St. George Illawarra Dragons away at WIN Stadium.[4] At the time he was leading the lower NSW Cup competition in post-contact metres, tackle breaks, runs and run metres.[5] He scored a try and had another disallowed as he "starred" in his first game.[2] He said after the match, "I got about 20 tickets for family and my mates organised a bus. I think there was about 50 of them that jumped on the bus and sat in that corner. You could definitely hear them. It is a dream just to play footy but to score on debut with my mates in that corner, just the support they gave was awesome and made it 10 times better."[2] The Sydney Morning Herald said, "The flying mullet man from Minchinbury, a mad Wests Tigers fan, became an instant cult hero."[6]
Cini played a total of four matches for the Wests Tigers in the 2021 NRL season as the club finished 13th and missed the finals.[7] In December 2021, Cini was released by the Wests Tigers and he joined NSW Cup side Newtown.[8]
2022
editBefore the start of the 2022 NSW Cup season, Cini departed Newtown and signed a contract to join Parramatta's NSW Cup team.[9]
2023
editCini made no appearances for Parramatta's first grade team in 2023. He would instead play for the clubs NSW Cup side making 20 appearances and scoring eleven tries.[10]
2024
editOn 21 August, the Castleford Tigers announced the signing of Cini on a two-year deal from the 2025 season in the Super League.[11][12] On 11 September, it was announced that Cini would be departing the Parramatta club. Cini made no first grade appearances for Parramatta in 2024. He would instead play for the clubs NSW Cup team.[13]
References
edit- ^ Rugby League Project
- ^ a b c Brad Walter (2 May 2021). "A tale of two Zacs: Cini stars in Tigers upset as Lomax injured". nrl.com.
- ^ "Zac follows in famous footsteps". The Western Weekender. 3 August 2018.
- ^ "Round 8 Team Lists". NRL.com. 1 May 2021.
- ^ "Stats". nrl.com. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021.
- ^ "Flying mullet man from Minchinbury: Cini an instant cult hero". Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ Conrad, Alex (6 October 2021). "Wests Tigers fans savage the club's new-look logo". News.com.au.
- ^ "Christmas and New Year Greetings from the Newtown Jets". www.newtownjets.com.
- ^ "Raiders NSW Cup Defeated In Two-point Thriller Against Eels". www.raiders.com.au.
- ^ "Souths half to force awkward call; 102kg Eels beast ready to erupt — 15 ressies set to break into NRL". www.foxsports.com.au.
- ^ "Castleford sign Parramatta Eels back Cini". BBC Sport. 21 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
- ^ Harber, Tony (21 August 2024). "Zac Cini aiming high with Castleford Tigers after joining from Paramatta Eels". Wakefield Express. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
- ^ "Eels farewell departing players". www.parraeels.com.au.