Junior Amone
Talatau Junior Amone (born 10 April 2002) is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a five-eighth for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the NRL.
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Talatau Junior Amone | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia | 10 April 2002||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 184 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 89 kg (14 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Five-eighth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] As of 2 September 2023 |
Background
Amone played his junior rugby league for the Western Suburbs Red Devils.[2] He is of Tongan descent.[3]
Playing career
2021
Amone made his debut in round 9 of the 2021 NRL season for St. George Illawarra against Canterbury-Bankstown, scoring a try on debut in a 32-12 victory.[4] Amone made eleven appearances for the club throughout the season as the club finished 11th and missed out on the finals.[5]
2022
In round 22 of the 2022 NRL season, Amone scored a hat-trick in St. George's 24-22 loss against the Canberra Raiders.[6] On Thursday 11 August 2022, Amone signed a Contract Extension with the Saints until the end of the 2024 NRL season.[7] In round 23, Amone scored two tries in a 46-26 victory over the Gold Coast Titans.[8]
2023
Amone played his first game of the season on 1 April after being stood down by the NRL, St. George Illawarra beat the Dolphins 38-12.[9] Amone played 19 games for the club in the 2023 NRL season where they finished 16th on the table.[10]
Statistics
Season | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2021 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
2022 | 24 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 24 | |
2023* | 18 | 1 | ||||
Totals | 53 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 40 |
*denotes season still competing[11]
Criminal conviction
In December 2022, Amone was charged with reckless grievous bodily harm in company, destroying property and intimidation following an alleged attack on a roofing contractor at Warrawong on 15 November 2022.[12] He was initially stood down from playing under the NRL no-fault stand-down policy, but he was allowed to play after his case was moved from the district court to Wollongong Local Court, where he would face a maximum sentence of five years if found guilty on all charges. That maximum sentence is below the threshold of the no-fault stand-down policy.[13] On 18 October 2023 Amone was found guilty of all charges. He will be sentenced on 6 December.[14]
References
- "Talatau Amone - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
- Proszenko, Adrian (21 August 2021). "'It's a lot of money when you are 14': Amone's first payday a glimpse of what is to come". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- Pryde, Scott (27 December 2021). ""In a position to win": Tonga out to cause major World Cup boilover". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
- "Round 9 team lists". National Rugby League. 9 May 2021. Archived from the original on 4 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- Brunsdon, Simon (28 August 2021). "Luckless Cowboy ends 14-game losing streak; Dragons find their new No.6: 3 Big Hits". Fox Sports. Archived from the original on 6 October 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- "Canberra Raiders edge St George Illawarra 24-22 to keep NRL finals hopes alive, Gold Coast beat Manly 44-24". www.abc.net.au.
- "Dragons extend Amone until the end of 2024". dragons.com.au.
- "Canberra Raiders beat Newcastle Knights to keep alive NRL finals hopes, Dragons thump Titans". www.abc.net.au.
- Nicolussi, Christian (1 April 2023). "Hunt fires up Dragons to hand Dolphins a reality check". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- "Hunt call that could define Flanagan era; glaring hole that must be filled: Brutal Review". www.foxsports.com.au.
- https://www.nrl.com/players/nrl-premiership/dragons/talatau-amone/
- Walsh, Dan (22 December 2022). "Dragons' Talatau Amone charged over alleged hammer attack". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
- Proszenko, Adrian (7 March 2023). "'So grateful': Dragons star Amone opens up on shock path back to NRL". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- Proszenko, Adrian; McPhee, Sarah (18 October 2023). "Dragons playmaker Amone found guilty of hammer attack". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 18 October 2023.