David Fifita ran out for Brisbane in Saturday night’s come-from-behind victory over Canberra, earning his own slice of history in his maiden NRL game.
Fifita, a young back-rower brought through the Bronco’s junior system, etched his name in the record books on Saturday night, becoming the first player in history born in the 2000ss to feature in the NRL.
Born on the 25th of February, 2000, Fifita is the first and only man at this point in time to be born in this millennium and play first grade footy, a remarkable effort especially regarding the quality forward pack the Broncos possess.
He certainly showed he was up to the task in his 47 minute stint on the park, running for over 80 metres, the young forward made 18 tackles while breaking two tackles himself.
It was teammate Andrew McCullough, who held the last similar significant milestone, becoming the first man born in the 1990’s to play NRL after his 2008 debut for Brisbane. Flash forward a decade and McCullough is in the midst of his first State of Origin series.
Fifita joins fellow 2018 debutants Payne Haas and Kotoni Stagg as Brisbane’s ‘generation next’, the last forwards on the production line of the baby Broncos.
Head coach Wayne Bennett was impressed with how Fifita handled himself in his first game at the top level.
"I liked it because he played mistake free and that is all you can ask. He was good and never let anybody down. He did a really good job for us,” Bennett told reporters post-game.
Brisbane teammate Payne Haas fell short of earning the record himself by a matter of weeks, born in the December of 1999.
Fifita has re-signed with the Broncos until the end of the 2020 season, and while he has the next decade to leave his mark on the game, it’s only taken one 47 minute stint to leave his name etched permanently in rugby league history.
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