Departing New Zealand Warriors forward Jazz Tevaga has opened up on his exit from the club after nine seasons and 138 games with them.
A stalwart of the club since his arrival on the scene in 2016, it is easily forgotten among fans that he has played his final match for the Warriors, as all the headlines over the past few weeks have been about Shaun Johnson's retirement from football.
A homegrown talent, Tevaga has been a key player off the interchange bench for many years and was even awarded the inaugural Dally M Interchange Player of the Year in 2018.
The 28-year-old has managed 19 appearances this season, where he has scored one try, made 27 tackle busts and 374 tackles and ran on average 90 running metres per match.
Speaking to theย NZ Heraldย on his exit from the club, Tevaga admitted he was devastated when he found out that they could decide against extending his contract beyond 2024.
โObviously, when I had the conversation with the club, it was a pretty hard pill to swallow,โ he said.
โI was pretty emotional for a couple of weeks. But I'm excited to finish strongly with the boys.
โI always thought I'd be a one-club man. It was hard to see myself playing for another club, because I've been here for so long.
โBut that's just the way it is, it's business. These guys have got a lot of young talent coming through that they need to keep here.
โThat's just the way it rolls sometimes, I understand the game. I've been in the game [for] a long time, I've seen some long-serving Warriors leave.
โIt's just the way it rolls. That's why I was emotional, it was the reality of leaving.โ
Uncontracted at the moment, Tevaga revealed that he has found a new NRL team for the 2025 season, meaning he won't move overseas to play in the Super League or switch codes to rugby union.
At this stage, no club has yet to confirm an interest in his services, but he has been linked with a potential move to the Manly Sea Eagles to play under Anthony Seibold.
A four-time international for Samoa, he is looking forward to the next chapter in his career but will miss the passionate Warriors fanbase.
โOur supporters are very staunch supporters. Selling out the stadium every week, every home game we've had here has been massive,โ Tevaga added.
โThe support we get in the street has been huge. I'm really going to miss this place.
โI'm not looking forward to coming back here next year. But hopefully we come and pump you brothers.โ
