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Get to know... Danny Levi

Find out more about the Rhinos' latest recruit: Danny Levi

Factfile

Name: Danny Levi

Age: 29

Place of Birth: Wellington, NZ

Clubs played for: Newcastle Knights (2015-19), Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles (2020), Brisbane Broncos (2021), Norths Devils (2021), Huddersfield Giants (2022), Canberra Raiders (2023-25)

Junior Clubs: Randwick Kingfishers, Glenmore Park Brumbies

International Honours: Samoa, New Zealand

Position: Hooker

NRL Debut: Vs Cronulla Sharks (R15, 21^st June 2015)

Super League Debut: Vs Toulouse Olympique (R1, 12^th February 2022)

Honours

Challenge Cup: Finalist 2022 (Huddersfield)

New South Wales Cup: Winner 2015 (Newcastle)

Queensland Cup: Winner 2021 (Norths)

State Championship: Finalist 2015 (Newcastle)

Career so far: Club

Danny Levi’s career began in Wellington, New Zealand, as a junior with Randwick Kingfishers before he moved to Australia at the age of 14 to sign for Sydney Roosters' junior programme.
Also featuring for Glenmore Park Brumbies in his youth, Levi also played for the Brisbane Broncos’ National Youth Competition (NYC) side, but made his name when he moved to the Newcastle Knights in 2013. He captained the Knights to the Holden Cup minor premiership in 2014 – a season in which he was named in the Holden Cup Team of the Year for scoring 13 tries in 26 games – and made a further 13 appearances at the start of the 2015 NYC Cup campaign, scoring seven tries.
2015 was Levi’s breakout year as he was brought off the bench by Ray Stone to make his NRL debut against Cronulla, aged 19. The hooker was a try scorer in his second NRL game against Brisbane and finished the season with seven first-grade appearances and two tries.

His performances for the Knights Under-20s squad that year also earned him a second consecutive spot in the NYC Holden Cup 2015 Team of the Year, but more impressively, he featured for the Knights Reserves side in their run to the NSW Cup Grand Final. Playing 10 times in a side that contained Joseph Tapine, Jake Mamo, Sione Mata'utia and Carlos Tuimavave, Levi steered the side to key wins in Finals games against Manly, Penrith and Mount Pritchard, before defeating Wyong Roos 20-10 in the season finale to win the Knights' first NSW Cup title since 1995.
Levi also ran out for the Knights in the 2015 State Championship, but Matt Lantry's side couldn't beat a Matt Parcell-inspired Ipswich Jets team who were 26-12 victors.

Nathan Brown’s appointment as Knights head coach in 2016 saw Levi become a mainstay in Newcastle’s NRL side, playing 18 times. A year later, the hooker was ever-present in blue and red, making 24 appearances and scoring three tries in games against Manly, Brisbane and Cronulla.
After 34 more first-grade games for the Knights in 2018 and 2019, Levi signed a one-year contract with Manly in 2020 and played all 20 games as starting hooker under head coach Des Hasler. He scored tries in back-to-back games that season in wins over Parramatta and North Queensland.

Upon the completion of his contract, Levi landed at Queensland Cup side Norths Devils at the start of 2021, and the hooker opened the season with three tries in four games. His impressive start caught the attention of the Brisbane Broncos, who signed Levi for the remainder of the year and the hooker made nine appearances. Whilst at the Broncos, he played twice alongside current Rhinos players Brodie Croft and Keenan Palasia.
Levi continued to play for Norths during 2021 too, winning eight of nine games to win the minor premiership for the Devils. He played in Finals wins over Tweed Seagulls and Burleigh Bears to set up a Grand Final clash against Wynnum-Manly Seagulls, which Norths won 16-10 with Levi as the starting hooker.

A move to Super League presented itself in 2022 as Levi joined Huddersfield. Combing with Tui Lolohea, Will Pryce and Theo Fages, the quartet guided the Giants to one of the club’s best Super League finishes, a first play off appearance in seven years, and a Challenge Cup Final outing in a hugely successful season under Ian Watson. Levi played 30 games, scoring four tries, and ranked as one of Huddersfield's top tacklers and offloaders during his sole season in claret and gold.
Back in the NRL in 2023 after being released from the Giants on compassionate grounds, Levi joined Canberra Raiders initially on a two-year contract. Two broken jaws in his debut season for the Raiders restricted the hooker to four NRL games and ten games for the club’s Reserves outfit, but he bounced back in 2024 to regain the starting hooker role. A strong season saw the Raiders finish on the brink of the finals and Levi enjoyed one of his best campaigns, featuring 22 times in the NRL and scoring six tries for the Green Machine.
Levi spent most of the 2025 season in Canberra's Reserves ranks as he scored four tries in 21 games in the NSW Cup competition. Jordan Uta's side finished sixth in the league table and qualified for the Finals, but their season was ended by Parramatta in the semi finals. Levi finished the season as the competition's top metre maker from dummy half, and was twelfth overall in tackles. He featured twice for Ricky Stuart's Raiders side in the NRL too, running out in the round 13 win over Sydney and round 27 loss to the Dolphins.

Career so far: International

Levi's first taste of representative rugby came at 19-years old, when the hooker capped off a successful first season in the Knights set up with a call up to the Junior Kiwis squad for their clash against Australia's Under-20s. Starting at hooker for Brent Gemmell's side, Levi and a Junior Kiwis side that contained Kodi Nikorima, Sam Lisone, Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Joe Tapine beat Clint Gutherson and Valentine Holmes' Kangaroos 15-14 thanks to a drop goal from Te Maire Martin.

He was retained a year later for the Under-20s rematch between the two nations, but Australia got their revenge in a 22-20 final score.
2017 saw Levi earn his first call-up to the senior New Zealand squad ahead of the World Cup as one of five debutants. He played all three group games for David Kidwell's side, who progressed through to the quarter finals only to lose out to Fiji in a shock result.
His form in 2018 earned Levi a spot in the Maori All Star side that faced off against the Indigenous All Stars at AAMI Park. He joined Kalyn Ponga as the only Newcastle Knight representatives in the Maori side, but lost out 34-14.
He committed to Samoa later that year, starting in a 44-18 defeat at the hands of Fiji. Despite missing the mid-season international win over Cook Islands in preparation for the 2022 World Cup, Levi's strong season at Huddersfield was rewarded with a call-up to Ben Gardiner's World Cup squad where he pulled on the Samoa shirt four times in games against England, France, Tonga and Greece - scoring two tries against the latter.