NZ Kiwis star Joseph Tapine has emerged as the big winner from the Canberra Raiders end-of-season awards function, capturing his third straight Meninga Medal and the club captaincy for next year.
Tapine, 30, has become an integral part of the national team set-up, since debuting against Scotland in 2016, combining with skipper James Fisher-Harris in the front row, as the Kiwis overpowered Australia for the Pacific Championship crown last year.
He has continued that form for his club, bringing up 200 NRL first-grade games — including 20 for Newcastle Knights — this season. Tapine played all 24 of Canberra's games and ranked second in the competition for post-contact metres (1641), behind NZ Warriors counterpart Addin Fonua-Blake (1698).
He polled 33 votes as Raiders Player of the Year — 22 clear of his closest rival — and departing skipper Elliott Whitehead announced him as his successor for next season and beyond.
Tapine is contracted to Canberra to the end of the 2027 season.
The Raiders finished ninth on the competition table on the same points as eight-placed Newcastle Knights, but missed out on the playoffs on points differential, despite finishing their campaign on a three-game winning streak.
SHARE ME