Former Catalans Dragons forward Siosiua Taukeiaho admits he missed the challenge of playing in the NRL during his time in France. Taukeiaho’s time in Perpignan did not to go plan, it’s fair to say with the former Sydney Roosters man making just 10 appearances for Catalans.
The prop joined Steve McNamara’s side ahead of the 2023 season after eight years with the Roosters and the hope was that he would be able to lead the club to success. However, injury ensured he missed huge chunks of his first season and while he did manage to play in the Grand Final, that proved to be his last outing for the French side.
Injury prevented Taukeiaho from making a single appearance for Catalans in 2024 and his time at the club came to an end when he was one of three players to be sacked, following ‘an incident that was deemed to be highly unacceptable by the club’, alongside Jayden Nikorima and Damel Diakhate.
The Tonga international spent the second half of last season on the hunt for a new club and was reportedly a target for Canterbury Bulldogs. However, Taukeiaho eventually signed a one-year deal with Manly Sea Eagles last month that sees him become a member of Anthony Seibold’s side for the 2025 NRL season.
And, after his short spell in Super League, he admits a move back to the NRL was always the motivation.
“When I was in France, I was still waking up early to watch the NRL games,” Taukeiaho told NRL.com. “I kind of missed the atmosphere and missed challenging myself of playing at the highest level,” he added.
“It was one of the reasons why I wanted to come back. I missed the game. I was lucky enough to come back here to Manly. Now that I’m here, I’m very excited for the season.”
He added: “When I spoke to ‘Seibs’ about coming here, it was about the quality players that Manly have in the Trbojevic brothers, Daly Cherry-Evans, and Luke Brooks to name a few.
“But then you look at the strong forward pack here and someone like Haumole Olakauátu. I wanted to be a part of that and feel like we can do something special next year.”
