Latrell Siegwalt was born in Wagga but is representing France at the Rugby League World Cup. Photo: Wagga Kangaroos RLFC.
Wagga’s own Latrell Siegwalt made his international debut at the Rugby League World Cup this past weekend, but he did not don the green and gold Kangaroos jersey.
Instead, the Turvey Park Wanderers product played his first international game in the red and blue jersey of France.
While the result of the game was less than ideal for the Wagga-born utility, the story of how Siegwalt ended up on the French team links back to his grandfather.
Siegwalt’s grandfather George was born in France but now lives in Walgett, a small NSW town about an hour south of the NSW/Queensland border.
His grandfather moved to Australia at 10 years old following the end of World War II. Thanks to his grandfather, Siegwalt qualified for selection for the French side.
While only 25 and debuting in the NRL in Round 10 this year, Siegwalt has been a journeyman in several leagues across Australia.
At 16, Siegwalt represented NSW in the Koori Knockout, winning the tournament against a strong Queensland side in 2017. In 2018, he made the grand final with the Riverina Bulls in the Laurie Daley Cup, losing to the Newcastle Knights before being selected for a Canterbury Bulldogs junior squad in 2019.
Siegwalt returned to Wagga for several years before joining the Redcliffe Dolphins Queensland Cup side in 2024 after representing Walgett in the 2023 Koori Knockout.
When speaking to the NRL, Redcliffe Dolphins coach Ben Te’o said Siegwalt’s impressive outing during the knockout was what brought him back under the radar of NRL clubs.
“Latrell’s come a long way. I first saw him playing in an Indigenous carnival, saw the footage of him playing, asked a couple of people about him,” Te’o said.
“I didn’t know too much about his journey at the time, but I knew what I saw.
“I had a lot of conversations with his father, some really good conversations about Latrell taking a step to move out of home, move out of Wagga Wagga, take that leap and really back himself to come up here.
“So, he came up, and there were some tough times for him navigating the move, but he really stuck it out.
“He’d become a big part of the Redcliffe Dolphins, then he’d become someone who got a train and trial with the Brisbane Broncos, which led on to South Sydney (Rabbitohs).”
Siegwalt signed a two-year deal with the Rabbitohs in September 2025. He made his debut as a centre for the club in Round 10, converting five out of six try conversions as well as a penalty goal.
Siegwalt played 10 games in 2026, before impressing the scouts of the French national team.
Siegwalt played all 80 minutes of France’s first game against Samoa at CommBank Stadium on Friday (16 October). France lost the game 78 to 4.
France’s next game will be against cross-channel rivals England on Saturday 24 October at 5:35 pm AEDT in Perth. Siegwalt has been selected to play.