Quinn Ngawati
RUGBY
SCHOOL: St. Michaels University School (Victoria) FRESHMAN’S FUTURE: Toronto WolfPack (professional)
Ask the experts to describe Quinn Ngawati’s game on the rugby pitch and they all seem to boil it down to one word: expansive.
Fittingly, that’s also the way to describe the past, present and future of the 6-foot-4, 200-pound phenom with the St. Michaels University School Blue Jags whose rugby ties are already solidly entrenched around the world.
From his home base in Victoria to his family roots in New Zealand and an impending professional career awaiting in England, the multiskilled Ngawati has gleaned as firm a grasp of the global game as is possible for a 17-year-old.
And having already played on three continents and two hemispheres, maybe it’s fitting that he already knows what he would like to do when his playing career is someday over: Become a commercial pilot.
“If that was ever possible, I’d be excited for that, ”Ngawati says when he’s jokingly asked about someday flying his own plane to play in a match. “I’ve always had a passion for flying and my mom and my family have always told me I need some kind of a backup plan.”
But before the backup plan is put into effect, Ngawati will explore Option No. 1.
Late last year, Ngawati took a shot at trying out for the Toronto WolfPack, the world’s first trans-Atlantic rugby league (13-aside) team, which plays in England’s League 1.
He survived initial cutdowns in Abbotsford, one of five North American cities to host trials, made the final 16 and was sent to England, then was announced as one of only three to join the rest of the team’s veteran-laden roster.
Ngawati, with his high ceiling, will begin playing somewhere within the team’s affiliated club system in England over the next few months. And for him, it’s the life he had always envisioned for himself.
“Some people grow up wanting to be doctors or lawyers, and that is how they go through planning for their professions. (Playing rugby) is how I have planned out my life.”
His present includes growing up in Victoria. Ngawati played both basketball and rugby at SMUS, and earlier this month, led the rugby team to its third straight B.C. Double A title.
And as a 10th-grader, he was able to experience a part of his past, spending an entire year in New Zealand, playing the country’s national game at a top school and exploring his native Maori roots.
“I felt right at home with the people,”said Ngawati, whose reconnection included studying about his heritage in school and visiting with a huge network of family, including grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins.
For Quinn Ngawati, his life, like his game on the rugby pitch, touches all parts of the world.
In fact, it’s so expansive that a pilot’s licence might really come in handy.