26 Oct 2024

Meet…Maika Sivo

Factfile

Name: Maika Sivo

Nickname: The Fijian Flyer

Age: 31

Place of Birth: Nadi, Fiji

Clubs played for: Paramatta Eels (2019-2024), Penrith Panthers Reserves (2017-2018)

International Honours: Fiji

Position: Wing

NRL Debut: Vs Penrith Panthers (Round 1) 17th March 2019

Career so Far

- First arriving in Australia from Fiji in 2015, Maika Sivo left Rugby Union behind him to give Rugby League a try. Starting with Country Rugby League side Gundagai Tigers before moving to the Mounties in 2016, he showed his try scoring capabilities with 35 tries for the Mounties in the Sydney Shield. Along with a spell between St Mary's and Penrith Panthers' Reserves side in 2017, he amassed a total of 96 tries over three years.

- 2017 in particular was a breakout year for Sivo and the Panthers as they won their first NSW Cup title. Sivo's 14 tries on the wing that season helped a side that contained the likes of current Panthers stars Dylan Edwards, James Fisher-Harris, Liam Martin and Jarome Luai reach their second NSW Cup Final and a try-scoring performance from the Fijian Flyer in the final saw them defeat Wyong Roos 20-12.

- The result pitted Penrith against PNG Hunters in that year's State Championship Final, and Sivo found the try line again in a more convincing 42-18 win.

- Although Penrith couldn't hold onto their title in 2018, Sivo still appeared 13 times for the Panthers as they finished at the top of the NSW Cup table. One of his highlight performances came against Wests as a hat trick helped Penrith to a 38-10 triumph.

- Overall, he scored 22 tries in 25 games for the Panthers across two NSW Cup seasons.

- Parramatta was the first to jump at the chance to sign Sivo at the end of his Penrith contract in 2018 and recruited him on a two year deal from the 2019 season. Playing under current Rhinos boss Brad Arthur, he hit the ground running in his debut NRL season as he scored 22 tries in 25 games. Ten tries came consecutively between round six and round 14 as the rookie picked up form, plus he added two tries in his first Finals game; a 58-0 result against Brisbane Broncos.

- Despite the COVID pandemic breaking up the NRL season in 2020, Sivo and Parramatta continued to be a strike force in the competition. With results putting the Eels third by the end of the season, Sivo's try scoring also flourished as he finished as the club's top try scorer once again with 15 tries. A four try performance against North Queensland was a particular highlight.

- 2021 saw Sivo better his try tally as he crossed the try line 17 times for the Eels, but although the side continued to appear in the Finals series, they struggled to break into the Grand Final circle as they suffered semi-final defeats to South Sydney in 2020 and Premiers Penrith in 2021. That year, Sivo's form in particular didn't go unnoticed as he committed to a new two-year deal with the Eels, despite interest from rival clubs.

- 2022 brought an end to Parra's 13-year wait to return to the Grand Final as a stellar season saw Arthur guide the club to 16 wins and a fourth place finish. Although Sivo's year got off to a tough start as the winger was sidelined with a hamstring injury, six tries in three games for the Eels' Reserves side confirmed that he was available for the club's race for the Finals, during which he scored twelve tries. Defeat to Penrith in the early rounds of the Finals didn't shake Parramatta as they went on to knock out Canberra and North Queensland (Sivo scoring in the 24-20 win) to secure their place in the season finale, where they lost out 28-12 to Sivo's former club the Panthers.

- 20 tries in as many appearances for the Fijian in 2023 helped the Eels finish just outside of the Finals spots. That year, he scored three tries in a tight 26-24 loss to Gold Coast and he went a step further as he crowned his year off with four against Penrith.

- His last season in the blue and gold of Parramatta saw Sivo top the Eels' try tally for a fifth time in his career. Despite making the least amount of appearances for the club since he joined in 2019, Sivo still managed to amass 17 tries which took him over 100 tries NRL tries.

- As Parramatta announced his departure earlier this week, his 104 tries in 115 appearances puts him as one of the club's all-time leading try scorers.

Career so Far: International

- Having been an Under-20s Rugby Union international with Fiji as a junior, Sivo got his first taste of playing for the Bati in June 2019 when they faced off against Lebanon. It was a memorable debut for the Eels man as he scored twice in the 58-14 result.

- Left out of a convincing win over Samoa in November 2019, he was back in the line up as Fiji beat Papua New Guinea 22-20 in Christchurch.

- After the Covid pandemic halted international rugby in 2020 and 2021, Sivo represented Fiji next in June 2022 as he featured on the wing in a 24-14 loss to PNG in preparation for that year's World Cup. That year's competition saw Sivo play every game for the Bati, kicking off with a 42-8 loss to Australia in their opening group game before he scored twice in a 60-4 win over Italy. Another Sivo try against Scotland saw Fiji though to the quarter finals, where their World Cup came to an end in a tight 24-18 loss to New Zealand; Sivo was a try scorer again.

- Last year's Pacific Championships saw Sivo continue his try scoring antics as Fiji competed for the Pacific Bowl. Opening with a try against Cook Islands in Port Moresby, Sivo went one better as the Bati defeated hosts Papua New Guinea thanks to two tries from their star winger. With both sides confirmed as Finalists a week later, this occasion saw the Kumuls take away the win.

- This year's Pacific Championships saw Sivo score against PNG in their opening game of the competition, although the Kumuls took away a 22-10 result. He will also in contention for the upcoming game against Cook Islands as they look to return back to the Pacific Bowl final.