New Zealand rugby union player
Rugby player
Cortez Ratima
Full name Cortez-Lee Peter Ratima Date of birth (2001-03-22 ) 22 March 2001 (age 23) Place of birth Piopio , New ZealandHeight 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) Weight 87 kg (192 lb; 13 st 10 lb) School Hamilton Boys' High School
Cortez-Lee Peter Ratima (born 22 March 2001) is a New Zealand professional rugby union player who plays as a half-back for Super Rugby club Chiefs and the New Zealand national team .[ 1] [ 2]
Early life
Ratima was born in the King Country area of New Zealand 's North Island in 2001.[ 3] His name, Cortez , comes from the 1972 Nike shoe of the same name because of his father's collection of the shoe.[ 4] He was raised on a farm in Piopio [ 5] and attended Piopio Primary School and College [ 5] in his youth and briefly attended New Plymouth Boys' High School on the North Island's western coastal region of Taranaki before relocating to Hamilton in the adjacent region to the north, Waikato .[ 5] Ratima finished his education at Hamilton Boys High School (HBHS) and was a regular representative of Waikato through all grades and was a part of the schools' first XV.[ 5] Ratima also represented the Waikato Chiefs U18s and New Zealand Māori U18s before eventually playing for the Waikato Rugby Academy at 17-years-old.[ 5]
Club career
He was named in the Chiefs squad for the 2022 Super Rugby Pacific season .[ 6] [ 7] He was also a member of the Waikato 2021 Bunnings NPC squad.[ 8]
International career
He made his international test debut against England on 13th July 2024. He scored his first international try against Fiji on the 19th July 2024.
References
External links