{"id":633543,"date":"2026-04-27T06:40:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T06:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/633543\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T06:40:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T06:40:17","slug":"roosters-star-wants-nsw-state-of-origin-selection-before-rugby-switch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/633543\/","title":{"rendered":"Roosters star wants NSW State of Origin selection before rugby switch"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tom<\/p>\n

April 27, 2026 \u2014 3:30pm<\/p>\n

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Roosters try-scoring machine Mark Nawaqanitawase says he would love to represent NSW in this year\u2019s State of Origin series after declaring his stint in rugby league has made him \u201cbigger, better and faster\u201d ahead of a return to rugby next year.<\/p>\n

Fresh off scoring two tries in the Roosters\u2019 62-16 Anzac Day demolition of the Dragons<\/a>, Nawaqanitawase fronted media alongside fellow rugby-bound star Angus Crichton at Bondi Beach on Monday morning, as Sydneysiders soaked up the public holiday sun.<\/p>\n

\"RoostersRoosters code-hopper Mark Nawaqanitawase.Monique Westermann<\/p>\n

Nawaqanitawase, who toured the UK with the Kangaroos last year, has emerged as a genuine option on the wing for NSW coach Laurie Daley, particularly in light of Zac Lomax\u2019s departure to rugby<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After initially deflecting questions about State of Origin \u2014 \u201cI\u2019m just trying to put my best foot forward here at the Chooks\u201d \u2014 the 25-year-old conceded he would be honoured to line up for the Blues in the series opener in Sydney on May 27.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a [dream] for most kids who played rugby league growing up,\u201d Nawaqanitawase said. \u201cIt\u2019s been something I\u2019ve wanted to do. If it happens, it happens. It\u2019s always nice to get a higher honour, but [I\u2019m] not really focused on it at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a tantalising clash looming on Saturday against a Brisbane side likely to welcome back Reece Walsh from injury, Nawaqanitawase was careful to avoid looking too far ahead into his rugby future.<\/p>\n

\"MarkMark Nawaqanitawase scores a try on Anzac Day against the Dragons. Getty Images<\/p>\n

The winger is set to join Japanese club Wild Knights next season before a likely push for Wallabies selection ahead of the 2027 World Cup on home soil.<\/p>\n

His impending code switch remains an awkward subject. The Roosters are his immediate focus, but Nawaqanitawase will follow Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii<\/a> back to the 15-man code at the end of the season. NSW Waratahs star Max Jorgensen has also rejected overtures from the Bondi club to remain in rugby.<\/p>\n

Asked about the prospect of choosing between representing the Kangaroos at the Rugby League World Cup later this year and joining the Wallabies for their spring tour of Europe, Nawaqanitawase brushed the question aside.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the last thing on my mind at the moment,\u201d Nawaqanitawase said. \u201cI\u2019m strictly Roosters at the moment, so I haven\u2019t really thought about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Crichton, who has signed a two-year deal with the Waratahs and Rugby Australia which begins at the end of this NRL season, struck a similar tone when asked whether he wanted to be in the Wallabies environment in November for Tests against England, Scotland and Wales.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s such a long way away,\u201d Crichton said. \u201cThat\u2019s my next deal and something that I\u2019ll worry about when the season is over. \u201cI think I owe it to the club and to my teammates just to be dialled in here. I keep an eye on it [Super Rugby] but not looking too far ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nawaqanitawase\u2019s impact in the NRL has been impressive and emphatic, with 32 tries in 31 appearances \u2014 a return that suggests he could become one of the most potent outside backs in world rugby.<\/p>\n

The signs were already there, with Nawaqanitawase telling this masthead ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup<\/a>: \u201cI have the confidence I can beat anyone\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"RoostersRoosters back-rower Angus Crichton.Getty Images<\/p>\n

But three years on, he believes his game has evolved significantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a different player to what I was two or three years ago,\u201d Nawaqanitawase said. \u201cIn a non-arrogant way, [I am] bigger, better and faster. I\u2019ve grown up a little bit. My physical aspect means I can do a lot more and just [be better] defensively as well. I\u2019ve learned so much that I know it will make me a better player wherever I go.<\/p>\n

\u201cRugby league and the NRL as a whole has exceeded what I thought I was going to feel [as an experience]. I\u2019m going to miss everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

With both due to depart at season\u2019s end, Nawaqanitawase and Crichton admitted they were making a conscious effort to savour their final months at the Roosters \u2014 including what was likely their last Anzac Day appearance<\/a> for the Tricolours.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a great day to be a Rooster,\u201d Nawaqanitawase said. \u201cI\u2019ve been shown a lot of love and support from all fans and ones that don\u2019t even follow the Roosters.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve come to the realisation that it\u2019s my last few days coming up, so it\u2019s been quite sad thinking about it. I love the club and I love the boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crichton added: \u201cI\u2019m savouring the moments and the feelings and memories a bit more. Sometimes you need to stop and smell the roses a bit and enjoy the moments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related Article\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

The clash against Brisbane pits Crichton against Michael Maguire, the coach under whom he won the 2024 Wally Lewis Medal in NSW\u2019s Origin series victory.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny team coached by Madge [Michael Maguire] you know they\u2019re going to come out with their baseball bats,\u201d Crichton said. \u201cHe\u2019s got a good knack of getting guys to play well, and especially guys that feel like they\u2019re underdogs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe definitely won\u2019t be going in there thinking that we\u2019re better than anyone. If anything, we\u2019re the underdogs, and they\u2019re the reigning premiers.\u201d<\/p>\n

News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"TomTom Decent<\/a> is the chief sports writer for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"April 27, 2026 \u2014 3:30pm Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":633544,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-633543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/633543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=633543"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/633543\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/633544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=633543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=633543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=633543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}