Dolphins prop Daniel Saifiti has confirmed his medical retirement after 191 matches and has opened up on the selfless reason behind the call.
The former NSW Blues star has been sidelined for the past year due to a serious shoulder injury and Saifiti will now step away from the NRL.
Saifiti played the majority of his career with the Newcastle Knights, having come through the club’s pathway system, before joining the Dolphins last year.
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The front-rower also played seven State of Origin matches and three games for Fiji.
Daniel Saifiti. Getty
Speaking to media after the announcement, Saifiti explained the decision and admitted he had “known for a while” that retirement was a possibility.
“The shoulder’s just not holding up,” he said.
“We tried our best to do full contact and all that type of stuff, but it just would have become a liability and would have been unfair on me and the team.
“I’ve probably known for a while to be honest, it’s just risking more damage and it’s just going to affect my quality of life after footy. Two young kids and I want to have more and a beautiful partner … it would be selfish of me to keep going.
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“I said it to the boys it was the hardest [decision] but it was also easy too.
“If I don’t have kids maybe it’s different, but when you’re struggling to pick the kids up when you come back from training, it makes the decision pretty easy.”
Dolphins boss Terry Reader paid tribute to the retiring veteran on Monday.
“There is no doubt Daniel was our best player in the first eight weeks of last year and we have really missed him since then,” Reader said.
“It is sad for it to end this way but Daniel has had a career he can be proud of, and he will continue to add to our club off the field this year.”
Daniel and Jacob Saifiti NRL Images
The 30-year-old had undergone an “extensive rehabilitation process” but the injury had not recovered to a level necessary to play again.
Saifiti and brother Jacob burst onto the scene with the Knights a decade ago, becoming the first set of twins to debut in the same NRL game.
The pair were constant fixtures in the Newcastle side during a tough on-field period before things turned around with top-eight finishes in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024.
Daniel moved north to Redcliffe at the end of 2024.