Player Chanel Harris-Tavita
- Thread starter WahsaurusRex
- Start date
- Full Name
- Chanel Harris-Tavita
- Date of Birth
- Apr 3, 1999
- Birth Location
- Auckland, New Zealand
- Nationality
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇼🇸 Samoa
- Height (cm)
- 183 cm
- Weight (kg)
- 89 kg
- Position/s
- Five-Eighth
- Halfback
- Utility
- Nickname
- Chitty, CHT
- Forum Nickname/s
- CHT
- Warrior #
- 233
- NRL Debut Date
- Apr 5, 2019
- NRL Debut Details
- NRL 2019, Round 4, NZ Warriors Vs Gold Coast Titans
- Warriors Debut Date
- Apr 5, 2019
- Warriors Debut Details
- NRL 2019, Round 4, Gold Coast Titans
- Warriors Years Active
- 2019
- 2020
- 2021
- 2022
- 2024
- 2025
- College/s
- Pakuranga College, Auckland
- Signed From
- Pakuranga Jaguars
- Junior Club/s
- Pakuranga Jaguars, Howick Hornets, Mt Wellington Warriors
- Current Club
- New Zealand Warriors
- Rep Honours
- Samoa
- NZ māori
- Junior Kiwi
- Status
- Active
- Rugby League Project
- https://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/players/chanel-harris-tavita/summary.html
NZWarriors.com
run_it_str8_again
Guest
Even if this offends the Jazz people's, I'm happy to ship him out. His mistakes rate (of which I have no statistical analysis) are my only reasoning.
Harris-Tavita: I'm here and ready to enjoy it
Chanel Harris-Tavita fizzed to start his second stint with the One New Zealand Warriors.
www.warriors.kiwi
One person, more than any other, stood smiling and shaking his head in wonderment, agog at what he was seeing. Just trying to take it all in.
In that moment he couldn’t help but have a then and now experience.
That person was Chanel Harris-Tavita.
Then was going back a little more than 12 months to the night of September 3, 2022.
A gruelling season had ended for the One New Zealand Warriors with a shattering 26-27 golden point loss to the Gold Coast Titans at a damp Mount Smart Stadium. The post-game atmosphere was funereal.
Palpably sad, too, because it was the 23-year-old Harris-Tavita’s 54th and farewell appearance after he had announced his decision in May to step aside from the NRL.
Now was the night of September 16, 2023.
Harris-Tavita was in the gym, a workplace transformed into party central, heaving with joy-fuelled people who had just seen the One New Zealand Warriors sublimely dismiss Newcastle 40-10 to book a spot in NRL preliminary finals for the first time since 2011.
No one had a better grasp of the before and after than Harris-Tavita.
He couldn’t stop smiling that heady night not much more than two months ago. And he hasn’t stopped smiling since returning to the club to begin a preseason campaign which wasn't the remotest possibility this time last year.
“I’ve always walked into the club with a smile but it just feels different this time,” he said in his first interview with warriors.kiwi since hitting the training field last week.
“I was watching from afar and thought: ‘I want to be part of that. If I can get the opportunity to go back and build on what they’re building, then I’d take it.’
“I feel like I’m in a good spot today. I don’t want to look too far back or too far ahead. I’m just here and I’m ready to enjoy it.”
It was in May this year that Harris-Tavita’s comeback was revealed.
Following that ill-fated night in September last year, he went on to represent Toa Samoa at the Rugby League World Cup in England where he helped the island nation to its historic appearance in the final against the Kangaroos at Old Trafford (when he started at hooker).
Travel and just getting lost in life were on his programme after that including a stint in Samoa where he worked on a family farm.
It gave him a new perspective while also refreshing him for another shot at the NRL with the club where it all started with his NRL debut in 2019.
“I’m lucky I was in that position to be able to walk away. It’s something I don’t regret,” says Harris-Tavita.
“I’m also pretty blessed to be given this opportunity to be able to come back to the club especially where they’re at at the moment.”
NZWarriors.com
‘It put life into perspective’: The moment that brought Warriors star back to NRL
Dan WalshDecember 18, 2023 — 3.46pmListen to this article
Chanel Harris-Tavita’s feet started to itch for the NRL again with coconut in hand on a Samoan farm.
One last jaunt with the backpack to Brazil had the returning Warriors utility ready “to ring Webby [coach Andrew Webster] and say I’m backing out.”
But for one of the younger players thrust into professional rugby league – Harris-Tavita became eligible to play for the Warriors under-20s on his 17th birthday in 2016, and so that day he did exactly that – the itch proved impossible to ignore.
So much so that after a year’s travelling Europe, Bali, Thailand, North and South America as well as Samoa, Harris-Tavita started his Warriors pre-season early, promptly tweaking his groin in a goalkicking session with Daryl Halligan.
Harris-Tavita raised eyebrows when he was off-contract 18 months ago and realising his passion for rugby league had waned, he walked away from a six-figure salary to work out he wanted.
Working on his uncle’s farm in the Samoan village of Afega, population 2000, and collecting coconuts on weekends, it all twigged for the 24-year-old.
“It was a very simple life over there,” Harris-Tavita said, having kept up with the Warriors stunning rise to a grand final qualifier under Webster when he could.
“It really put life into perspective and made me appreciate what I have here. It was a bit of happiness and a bit of FOMO [fear of missing out]. I was in Samoa watching them play and the Wi-Fi wasn’t great.
“I kept a close eye on them and that’s one of the reasons why I came back to the club. I saw a lot of potential and I think we can go a step further next year.
“The longer I thought about it, the more I watched the boys, the more time I had to myself, I thought, ‘Look, I’m young enough to get myself back into shape’.
“I thought about the opportunity I have, still being in my 20s, to play as a pro athlete … It’s the time to take full advantage of what I can do.”
Harris-Tavita returns to the Warriors on a two-year deal, with a mutual option for 2026, that compares favourably to the money he was earning in his last contract.
He had other NRL options and spoke to his former coach Todd Payten and the Cowboys, among them.
Given the Warriors have playmakers Shaun Johnson, Luke Metcalf, Te Maire Martin and Ronald Volkman in their top 30 this season, there are no guarantees for Harris-Tavita.
Or regrets.
“Life is about making mistakes and learning from them and even if it wasn’t the right decision for me, I’m still willing to own that decision and I know that back then that was the best decision for me,” Harris-Tavita said.
“I just urge players to be honest with themselves. Only you know deep down how you’re feeling about whatever situation you are in.
“Even if it’s going against the grain, just back yourself … Now that I’m back, I’m refreshed, I’m happy and I’m not saying ‘imagine if I took a year off to travel’.
“I’ve done it and I’m proud of myself for that, I’m back and I’m ready to go.”
Does that read that he felt he made a mistake coming back to the Warriors with our half depth? But no regrets?
And does that mean he sees himself as a half still?
I respect his decision to walk away from the game and all, got to do what u got to do, but i do think he has to prove his worth again. Certainly shouldnt be guarenteed a walk up.
While showing some hearty attributes he never really nailed his core roles here last time and as an organisation we've moved on to the point our standards are expectations are high and so they should be. Performance is king and whatever role they see for him id be expecting him to nail his role or its next man up.
I hope he does, Certainly no excuses as the culture Websters cultivating is one setting players up for success.
While showing some hearty attributes he never really nailed his core roles here last time and as an organisation we've moved on to the point our standards are expectations are high and so they should be. Performance is king and whatever role they see for him id be expecting him to nail his role or its next man up.
I hope he does, Certainly no excuses as the culture Websters cultivating is one setting players up for success.
NZWarriors.com
It could read that way but I thought it was about walking away from the game. A lot of chatter was he was making a mistake at the time including on here. He also mentioned in there about players being honest with themselves.
Seen a fair few people write of CHT and just wondering why? He's shown he can play with passion and has good work ethic, he's only played 54 first grade games and while I understand taking a year off is probably not ideal for his development, he will come back refreshed and with a chip on his shoulder.
Also it usually not til after 100 ish first grade games you start to see more improvement in halves? CHT has a long way to go until he's finished developing his half skills especially with the experience and game-reading side, and with Webby instructing them in footy smarts I'm sure he will get there. Much too early to write off a half after 54 games imo.
Also it usually not til after 100 ish first grade games you start to see more improvement in halves? CHT has a long way to go until he's finished developing his half skills especially with the experience and game-reading side, and with Webby instructing them in footy smarts I'm sure he will get there. Much too early to write off a half after 54 games imo.
This could workout as an absolute prescient signing with SJ getting hurt. CHT has actually played 7 for an extended period, unlike our other options. It's really between him and Metcalf and Metcalf hasn't proven anything at 7. If Metcalf can't do it, CHT will be a godsend. He's no SJ but he can kick goals just as well and can fill the role.
NZWarriors.com
CHT makes the most sense to get first shot at 7 for me. I personally haven’t seen anything to suggest that Metcalf could get us around the field with his boot. CHT has a bit to learn about his kicking placement but his highlights reel shows one of his 40/20’s kicked from the 30 and goes out on the 10m line. He’s got distance, just needs accuracy and some more height on those bombs.
We got 3 x 6's. I would go with TMM at 6 and put one of the other 2 at 7, doesn't matter which. In the pre season last year Metcalfe showed some promise in managing a game but then CHT had also done so in the past but has been out a while.
Keep the plan simple, survive till the King of Penrose returns.
Keep the plan simple, survive till the King of Penrose returns.
NZWarriors.com
As long as he fronts up ready to go.
Hopefully he does but nobody is a lock imo
Unless they have him locked in at 6- then you’d be better off slipping metcalf into 7 for a week or two.
NZWarriors.com
Tempting to post this in the recruitment thread with the talk of Jackson Hastings and other halves options are being bandied about a lot.
Watching Chanel kick a lot in the NSW cup, I see where he could be the natural successor to SJ.
Chanel is growing into a natural field kicker, with SJ's influence and Webster in charge he could learn Johnson's last tackle kicks, Shaun is a simple but effective kicker, his kicks are really straight forward and are in the more easily executed kicks directly to specific players to target with a kick chase, rather than trickery.
It remains to be seen if Chanel can develop SJ's pass selection, but even SJ took years to develop his, held back in part by being a running genius.
The over arching principle guiding my thinking is that while CHT is not a running half, the best version of SJ is not either.
Two areas Chanel needs to grow in a big way (no not kicking, he is a genuine kicker now that just needs maturity i.e. time now) is directing troops and pass selection, I am sure Webster can make it work for him.
A whole year of focusing on fundamentals away from the pressures of NRL are likely to benefit this older more mature version of Chanel we see in cup.
I think he should be a genuine halfback option.
Watching Chanel kick a lot in the NSW cup, I see where he could be the natural successor to SJ.
Chanel is growing into a natural field kicker, with SJ's influence and Webster in charge he could learn Johnson's last tackle kicks, Shaun is a simple but effective kicker, his kicks are really straight forward and are in the more easily executed kicks directly to specific players to target with a kick chase, rather than trickery.
It remains to be seen if Chanel can develop SJ's pass selection, but even SJ took years to develop his, held back in part by being a running genius.
The over arching principle guiding my thinking is that while CHT is not a running half, the best version of SJ is not either.
Two areas Chanel needs to grow in a big way (no not kicking, he is a genuine kicker now that just needs maturity i.e. time now) is directing troops and pass selection, I am sure Webster can make it work for him.
A whole year of focusing on fundamentals away from the pressures of NRL are likely to benefit this older more mature version of Chanel we see in cup.
I think he should be a genuine halfback option.
View: https://youtu.be/p3f0FxjTF-k?si=QPKsOjC0u0CtSLqs
Decent poddy here with Chanel and Te Maire interviewed by Isaac John.
One interesting takeaway was that Chanel said that he hasn’t put a big hit on since Browny told him it’s a waste of effort (as a half). Fair enough I guess. (45:10 on the poddy to hear more).
Think that aggressiveness when used at the right time is still a valuable trait for him. With that 14/Hooker role this year, hopefully he can bring back that presence if and when needed.
At least we know with Webby in charge, we’ll be getting the right Chanel that’s needed for this team.
Lots more covered in this podcast about both the boys, so it’s worth checking out.
NZWarriors.com
Really enjoyed the previous one with Jazz and Walker also, look forward to this tomorrow.
Huge fan of CHT, but yea unless he wants be like old man Foz with his zimmerframe or Matai. You can make strong tackles as he did against the Raiders, but snapping blokes in half can do just as much damage to yourself.
