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Brian "Bizza" To'o
Personal information
Full nameBrian To'o
Born (1998-08-18) 18 August 1998 (age 26)
Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
Height175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight97 kg (15 st 4 lb)
Playing information
PositionWing
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2019– Penrith Panthers 117 80 0 0 320
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2019– Samoa 9 5 0 0 16
2019 Samoa 9s 4 3 0 0 12
2019 NSW Residents 1 1 0 0 4
2021–24 New South Wales 12 6 0 0 24
Source: [1]
As of 6 October 2024

Brian To'o (born 18 August 1998) is an Australian and Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a winger for the Penrith Panthers in the NRL.

He won the 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 NRL Grand Finals with the Penrith club. He has represented the NSW Blues in State of Origin and Samoa at Test and 9's level.

Background

[edit]

To'o was born in Sydney. Australia. His parents are of Samoan descent.[2] To'o also has Chinese ancestry.[3][4]

To’o grew up in the Sydney suburb of Mount Druitt and was educated at Rooty Hill High School. He played his junior rugby league for St Marys Saints.[5]

Career

[edit]
To'o playing for the Panthers in 2017
To'o playing for Penrith in 2018

2019

[edit]

To'o made his NRL debut in round 10 of the 2019 NRL season for Penrith against the New Zealand Warriors.[6]

To'o scored his first try in the top grade in Round 14 of the 2019 NRL season against South Sydney at ANZ Stadium in a 19–18 victory.[7]

In Round 18 against St George Illawarra, To'o scored two tries as Penrith won the match 40–18 at Panthers Stadium.[8]

To'o made a total of 15 appearances for Penrith in the 2019 NRL season as the club finished tenth on the table and missed out on the finals for the first time since 2015.[9]

2020

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In round 8 of the 2020 NRL season, To'o was taken from the field during Penrith's 19–12 victory over Wests Tigers at Bankwest Stadium. It was later revealed To'o would be ruled out for two months with a grade-three syndesmosis injury.[10]

He played a total of 16 games for Penrith in the 2020 NRL season as the club claimed the Minor Premiership and reached the 2020 NRL Grand Final. To'o played in the grand final and scored a second half try in Penrith's 26–20 loss against Melbourne.[11]

2021

[edit]

In round 4 of the 2021 NRL season, he scored two tries in a 46–6 victory over Manly-Warringah at Brookvale Oval.[12]

On 30 May, he was selected by New South Wales for game one of the 2021 State of Origin series.[13] At the time of his selection, To’o lead the league in both run metres and post-contact metres for players in any position.[14] He scored two tries in the opening game of the series as New South Wales defeated Queensland 50–6.[15]

In round 15, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in a 38–12 victory over the Sydney Roosters.[16]

On 27 July, To'o was ruled out for at least six weeks after suffering a syndesmosis injury in Penrith's victory over Brisbane.[17]

In round 25, To'o scored a hat-trick in Penrith's 40–6 victory over Parramatta.[18] On 27 September, To'o was named Dally M Winger of the year alongside Manly's Reuben Garrick.[19]

To'o played a total of 21 games for Penrith in the 2021 NRL season including the club's 2021 NRL Grand Final victory over South Sydney.[20]

2022

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In round 2 of the 2022 NRL season, To'o was taken from the field during Penrith's victory over St. George Illawarra. It was later announced that To'o would miss six to eight matches with a knee injury.[21]

To'o made his return to the Penrith side in round 9 against Parramatta which ended in a 22–20 defeat.[22]

On 29 May, To'o was selected by New South Wales to play in game one of the 2022 State of Origin series.[23]

In round 24, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in a 46–12 victory over the New Zealand Warriors.[24]

In the 2022 Qualifying Final, To'o scored two tries in Penrith's 27–8 victory over Parramatta.[25]

To'o played in Penrith's 2022 NRL Grand Final victory over Parramatta scoring two tries as Penrith finished 28–12 winners.[26]

In October he was named in the Samoa squad for the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.[27]

To'o playing for Samoa in 2022

To'o played in every game for Samoa at the 2021 Rugby League World Cup including the final against Australia. To'o scored a second half try as Samoa lost 30–10.[28]

To'o post 2021 RLWC Final

In November he was named in the 2021 RLWC Team of the Tournament.[29]

2023

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On 22 May, To'o was selected by New South Wales for game one of the 2023 State of Origin series.[30]

In round 14, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in their 26–18 victory over St. George Illawarra.[31]

In round 21, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in their 44–18 victory over Canterbury.[32]

In round 23, To'o scored two tries for Penrith as they put in a dominant performance to defeat Melbourne 26–6.[33]

In round 27, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in their 44–12 victory over North Queensland.[34]

In the 2023 preliminary final, To'o scored a hat-trick in Penrith's dominant 38–4 victory over Melbourne.[35]

To'o made 23 appearances for Penrith in the 2023 NRL season including the clubs 26–24 victory over Brisbane in the 2023 NRL Grand Final as Penrith won their third straight premiership.[36]

2024

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On 24 February, To'o played in Penrith's 2024 World Club Challenge final loss against Wigan. Following the match, To'o took a swipe at the referee involved in the game and Wigan player Jake Wardle saying "You can’t change much. The result is made, but he already knows he didn’t get it over the line, I’m sure the ref knows as well. Lying is a sin, as well. I already knew he didn’t get it down and when they awarded it, you’ve just got to move on. It is what it is. I’m happy for them. They can enjoy the win, and they deserve it, I guess".[37][38] In round 3 of the 2024 NRL season, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in their grand final rematch against Brisbane. Penrith would win the game 34-12.[39] On 26 May, To'o was named for New South Wales ahead of the 2024 State of Origin series.[40] In round 14, To'o scored a hat-trick in Penrith's 32-22 over Manly.[41] In game two of the 2024 State of Origin series, To'o scored two tries for New South Wales in their 38-18 victory over Queensland.[42] In round 23, To'o scored two tries for Penrith in their 36-34 comeback victory over Parramatta.[43] To'o played a total of 24 matches for Penrith in the 2024 NRL season including their 14-6 grand final victory over Melbourne.[44]

Statistics

[edit]
Year Team Games Tries Pts
2019 Penrith Panthers 15 9 36
2020 16 8 32
2021 21 15 60
2022 18 13 52
2023 23 21 84
2024 24 14 56
2025
Totals 117 80 320

Honours

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Individual

  • Dally M Winger of The Year: 2021, 2024

Club

Representative

Personal life

[edit]

To’o proposed to Moesha Crichton-Ropati at Suncorp Stadium amid the immediate post-match celebrations by the Penrith team of their grand final victory on 3 October 2021.[45] The couple got married in December 2022 and are expecting their first child, a boy, in late October 2023.[46]

To'o, who would play in his fifth consecutive grand final (2020-2024) on Sunday 6 October, is known for his questionably calorific breakfast that has become his tradition since 2020. Fox News reports that he enjoys two breakfast burgers, a bowl of chips with aioli and 6 cans of Coke Zero.[46]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Rugby League Project
  2. ^ "Penrith Panthers star Brian To'o's emotional proposal". Sky News Australia. 4 October 2021.
  3. ^ "How the NRL's multicultural round may look in the future". International Rugby League. 20 March 2023.
  4. ^ "Growing the Asian flavour in representative rugby league". National Rugby League. 5 October 2023.
  5. ^ "To'o and Luai check in on St Marys". NRL. 30 September 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  6. ^ "Round 10 NRL squad announcements". NRL.com. 16 May 2019.
  7. ^ "Parramatta crushes Brisbane 38–10, Melbourne beats Newcastle 34–4, Penrith defeats Souths 19–18". ABC News. 15 June 2019.
  8. ^ "Panthers burn Dragons for seven in a row". 7News. 19 July 2019.
  9. ^ "Blame game will not solve Panthers' problems". Western Weekender. 10 September 2019.
  10. ^ "Panthers look to Naden". 7news.com.au. 6 July 2020.
  11. ^ Hytner, Mike (25 October 2020). "Melbourne Storm beat Penrith Panthers as it happened". The Guardian.
  12. ^ "Kikau, Luai star as Panthers bury Manly at Lottoland". www.nrl.com. April 2021.
  13. ^ "NSW Origin team: Luai gets nod for Freddie's fresh-faced Blues". www.nrl.com. 30 May 2021.
  14. ^ "Stats". National Rugby League. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  15. ^ "NSW Blues win State of Origin series opener 50-6 against Queensland Maroons". ABC News. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  16. ^ "Cleary 'the cyborg' leads epic fightback, Taukeiaho sin bin burns Roosters' strong start: 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au. 18 June 2021.
  17. ^ Sullivan, Matthew (27 July 2021). "Panthers winger Brian To'o to undergo surgery on serious injury". News.com.au.
  18. ^ Gabor, Martin (3 September 2021). "Brian To'o bags three tries as Penrith Panthers belt Parramatta Eels". News.com.au.
  19. ^ McMurtry, Andrew (27 September 2021). "2021 NRL Dally M Awards Live: Tom Trbojevic crowned NRL's best". News.com.au.
  20. ^ Tedeschi, Nick (3 October 2021). "One of finest NRL grand finals of all time provides cure to difficult season". The Guardian.
  21. ^ "Double Dogs blow as star enforcer out for the season; Bronco set for sideline stint: NRL Casualty Ward". www.foxsports.com.au. 29 March 2022.
  22. ^ "Found peace with his anger': Moses new-found calm orchestrates rival upset". www.foxsports.com.au. 6 May 2022.
  23. ^ "Wighton starts at centre as Blues confirm lineup for Game One". www.nrl.com. 30 May 2022.
  24. ^ "Roosters outlast Storm in thrilling finals preview, Penrith tune up for finals with Warriors belting". ABC News. 26 August 2022.
  25. ^ "Cleary drops jaws with perfect return; flyer back to best with 222m stunner: Penrith ratings". www.foxsports.com.au. 9 September 2022.
  26. ^ "We hate Parra as Panthers mock Eels as Koroisau pokes fun at Tigers". www.smh.com.au. 3 October 2022.
  27. ^ Full list of every squad at the Rugby League World Cup 2021
  28. ^ McLaughlin, Luke (19 November 2022). "Australia 30-10 Samoa: Rugby League World Cup final – as it happened". The Guardian.
  29. ^ Samoan domination as unlikely halfback earns No.7 jersey: WC Team of the Tournament
  30. ^ "Graham ruled out for Blues, trio to debut as Fittler makes 'gamble'". www.nrl.com. 23 May 2023.
  31. ^ "Nathan Cleary out for six weeks with hamstring injury after Panthers win over Dragons, Roosters edge Bulldogs, Cowboys thrash Storm". ABC News. 4 June 2023.
  32. ^ "Sea Eagles hold off Sharks to win 30-26, Panthers thrash Bulldogs 44-18 to stay top of NRL ladder". www.abc.net.au.
  33. ^ "Cleary's perfect Panthers crush Storm as trainer sent off in bizarre moment - 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au.
  34. ^ "Panthers end Cowboys' season to clinch third minor premiership in four years — 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au.
  35. ^ "Brian To'o hat-trick fires Panthers past stunned Storm into NRL grand final". www.theguardian.com.
  36. ^ "NRL grand final 2023: Penrith Panthers defeat Brisbane Broncos – as it happened". www.theguardian.com.
  37. ^ "'Lying is a sin': Panthers star sledges Wigan rival over contentious WCC match winner". www.foxsports.com.au.
  38. ^ "World Club Challenge: Wigan Warriors 16-12 Penrith Panthers - Cherry and Whites crowned world champions for fifth time". www.bbc.co.uk.
  39. ^ "Panthers run riot in grand final rematch after Broncos lose Walsh to ugly injury: What we learned". www.foxsports.com.au.
  40. ^ "Blues name six rookies, new captain for Origin opener". www.nrl.com.
  41. ^ "'Day of hat-tricks': Brian To'o and Tommy Talau achieve rare feat in chaotic Manly-Penrith clash". www.nine.com.au.
  42. ^ "State of Origin 2024 Game 2: NSW Blues beat Qld Maroons – as it happened". www.theguardian.com.
  43. ^ "Panthers steal victory in CRAZY finish as late Gutho miss denies devastated Eels". www.foxsports.com.au.
  44. ^ "NRL grand final 2024 quick hits: Biting allegation, Panthers halves swansong and a controversial bunker decision". www.abc.net.au.
  45. ^ "NRL Grand Final 2021: Brian To'o's 'unreal' post-match proposal melts hearts". news.com.au. 3 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  46. ^ a b "'This is for my son': Expectant dad To'o dedicates premiership ring". National Rugby League. 5 October 2023. Retrieved 6 October 2023.

[1]

[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brian To'o.
  1. ^ "'Why change it?' Panthers flyer's 'disgusting' 2,000 calorie grand final diet revealed". Fox Sports. 4 October 2024. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
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