To fans of Super League, James Segeyaro is remembered for his time at Leeds Rhinos.
The hooker arrived as part of a swap with Zak Hardaker in 2016 as the Rhinos looked to fend off relegation a year after they won the treble,
He made his debut in a win over Hull FC away from home as Leeds’ season finally got underway.
In his 10 games for Leeds, he was a real hit scoring six tries as he helped Leeds to Super League safety and scoring a memorable long range try against Leigh Centurions in the final game of the season.
The former North Queensland Cowboys and Penrith Panthers agreed a two-year deal with the club but in December 2016 returned to Australia with no intention of returning to the UK due to homesickness which saw Segeyaro leave the club with immediate effect as the Rhinos brought in Matt Parcell who helped guide the Rhinos to the Super League title in 2017 with a record breaking number of tries for a hooker in Super League including a hat-trick against Warrington Wolves.
After his departure from Headingley, Segeyaro joined Cronulla for two seasons prior to joining Brisbane Broncos in 2019.
However, at the end of 2019 he was suspended after a positive test for a banned substance.
In 2022, he returned to the game with Manly Sea Eagles’ feeder club getting NRL game time due to the Manly Seven debacle.
However, he was not included in Papua New Guinea’s World Cup squad with Leigh Leopards’ Edwin Ipape picked ahead of him.
Following this, Segeyaro has made a surprise move joining Lezignan in the French Elite One Championship.
He joins the likes of James Maloney and Corey Norman in a star-studded French team.