Rob Valetini
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| Birth name | Robert Valetini | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 3 September 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | Template:Unit weight | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Westall Secondary College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rob Valetini (born 3 September 1998) is an Australian Rugby Union player who plays for the Template:Rut Brumbies in the Super Rugby competition.[1] His usual position is in the back row.[2]
Early life
The son of Fijian parents – father Manueli Valetini and mother Finau Valetini – the Melbourne-born Robert Valetini attended Westall Secondary College.[3][4] He played representative rugby for Victorian state teams at under 16, under 18 and under 20 levels.[2] A broken leg in his last year at school meant he missed a chance at selection for the 2016 Australian Schoolboys team,[5] but he was called up to play for the Melbourne Rising in the National Rugby Championship (NRC) later that season.[5]
Rugby career
While still at school, Valetini signed an Extended Playing Squad contract with the Brumbies for the 2017 season.[5] His parents told him the move to Canberra would give him valuable life experience and he was just the second Australian rugby forward to sign a Super Rugby contract while still a schoolboy.[6]
Valetini didn't play much rugby in the early part of his first year due to hand and ankle injuries, but he joined the Australia Under-20 team to play in the 2017 World Championship in Georgia.[7] In 2017, Valetini signed a two-year full-time Super Rugby contract with the Brumbies until 2019,[8] before playing NRC for the Canberra Vikings in 2017.[7] One of the most highly touted young prospects in Australian Rugby, Rob Valetini enters his second season with the Brumbies ready to impose himself on the Super Rugby competition.
A 19-year old hailing from Melbourne, Valetini became only the seventh player to sign a Super Rugby contract whilst still in high school, joining the likes of Kurtley Beale, Quade Cooper and James O’Connor in an illustrious club.
A technically sound backrower with a big bruising physique to back up his skills, Valetini is a strong ball carrier and game changing defender who has future Wallaby written all over him.
Valetini had a very successful 2017 despite injury interruption, the Victorian was selected in the Australian U20’s for the Junior World Cup in Georgia. He made highlight reels worldwide with some monster hits and big carries during the tournament.
The backrower also helped local side Wests to their first John I Dent Cup Grand Final since 2012, he and teammate Nick Jooste showing good form for the Lions.
A year older and feeling more comfortable in a full time professional set-up, expect Valetini to build on a promising start to his time with the Brumbies and push for regular Super Rugby game time in 2018.
References
- ^ "Rob Valetini - Brumbies". Brumbies Rugby. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ a b "Rob Valetini". Ultimate Rugby. Archived from the original on 16 October 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Young Robert Valetini extends contract with Brumbies". Fijian Community Association Victoria. 30 August 2017. Archived from the original on 3 November 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Dutton, Chris (29 December 2016). "ACT Brumbies rookie Rob Valetini hits like a freight train, but still learning to drive". The Canberra Times. Archived from the original on 25 January 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c "Schoolboy Robert Valentini called up to make his debut for Melbourne Rising". The Daily Telegraph. 30 September 2016. Archived from the original on 16 October 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Dutton, Chris (29 May 2017). "ACT Brumbies junior Rob Valetini wants to prove himself in Australian under-20s team". The Canberra Times. Archived from the original on 25 January 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
{{cite news}}:|archive-date=/|archive-url=timestamp mismatch; 16 October 2017 suggested (help); Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Rob Valetini". It's Rugby. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
- ^ "Valetini signs until 2019". Rugby Australia. 29 August 2017. Archived from the original on 3 November 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
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