Hull KR make Moala Graham-Taufa first signing for new boss Nathan Cayless
Hull KR have signed New Zealand outside-back Moala Graham-Taufa on a two-year deal.
The 24-year-old joins from South Sydney Rabbitohs and is the first signing made under new head coach Nathan Cayless, BBC Sport reported on 29 September.
Graham-Taufa operates in the outside backs. Those are the wide positions on the wing and at centre, where pace, handling under pressure and finishing decide tight games. He is a New Zealander who has built his career in Australia, home to the National Rugby League, the 17-team professional competition that sits at the top of the sport there.
He has previously played for two other NRL clubs, the Sydney Roosters and the New Zealand Warriors, before linking up with South Sydney. That path has taken him through three different full-time environments. He remains young for a player with that spread of experience. He turned 24 this year.
This season his rugby has come mainly in the New South Wales Cup. That is the second-tier, reserve-grade competition that sits just below the NRL and feeds first teams with match-ready players. He scored nine tries in 17 appearances for South Sydney's side at that level. In league a try is worth four points, earned by grounding the ball over the tryline.
That strike rate works out at better than a try every other game. In rugby league, teams get six tackles to march upfield before they must hand the ball over, so chances out wide can be few and far between. Taking them matters. Nine from 17 suggests a finisher in form.
Cayless has only recently taken charge at Hull KR. To make Graham-Taufa his first addition offers an early hint of the squad he wants to shape. The club confirmed the move on its official website in a notice titled "Hull KR sign Moala Graham-Taufa on a two-year deal" Hull KR, which lists the contract as running from the 2027 season.
For supporters, this means fresh competition for places on the flanks. Newcomers do not need last season's table to follow this one. Watch how quickly he gets the ball in space, and how often he finds the corner. That is the job he has been signed to do.
