Muizz Mustapha

Muizz Mustapha (born 3 April 2000) is a Nigerian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a prop forward for the Castleford Tigers in the Super League.

Muizz Mustapha

Personal information
Full name	Muizz Mustapha
Born	(2000-04-03) 3 April 2000 (age 24) Nigeria
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	15 st 4 lb (97 kg)
Playing information
Position	Prop
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 2018–22 Leeds Rhinos 9 1 0 0 4 2018(loan) → Featherstone Rovers 1 0 0 0 0 2019(loan) → Dewsbury Rams 2 0 0 0 0 2019(loan) → Newcastle Thunder 7 3 0 0 12 2021(loan) → Hull Kingston Rovers 11 0 0 0 0 2022(loan) → Bradford Bulls 8 0 0 0 0 2023– Castleford Tigers 30 0 0 0 0 2024(DR) → Batley Bulldogs 2 0 0 0 0 Total 70 4 0 0 16
Source: [1][2] As of 19 September 2024

He has previously played for the Leeds Rhinos in the Super League. He has spent time on loan and dual registration at Hull Kingston Rovers in the Super League, at Featherstone Rovers, the Dewsbury Rams, the Bradford Bulls and the Batley Bulldogs in the RFL Championship, and at Newcastle Thunder in League 1.

Background

Mustapha was born in Nigeria.^[3] He moved to Leeds with his family as a young child, initially settling in Harehills then later Hunslet.^[4]

Mustapha played junior rugby league for Hunslet Warriors. He joined the Leeds Rhinos youth system at scholarship level.^[4]

Career

Leeds Rhinos

In 2018 he made professional début on loan at Featherstone Rovers and has also spent time at the Dewsbury Rams in the Betfred Championship.

In 2019 he made début for Leeds v Workington Town in the Challenge Cup.^[5]

On 18 November 2020 it was announced that Mustapha would join Hull KR on a season-long loan starting in 2021.^[6]

Hull Kingston Rovers (loan)

Mustapha made a total of 8 appearances for Hull KR in the 2021 Super League season including the club's 28-10 semi-final defeat against the Catalans Dragons.^[7][8][9]

Bradford Bulls (loan)

On 2 December 2021, it was reported that he had signed for Bradford in the RFL Championship on loan.^[10]

Castleford Tigers

On 3 October 2022, the Castleford Tigers announced the signing of Mustapha from Leeds.^[11] He would join on a one-year deal, with an option for a further year in the club's favour.^[12] Head coach Lee Radford said, "His leg speed, his defence, his line speed is fantastic, and he is a different shape to a lot of front rowers kicking around in the competition."^[13]

Mustapha made his Castleford debut on 26 February 2023 against St Helens.^[14] He played 13 matches for Castleford in the Super League XXVIII season as the club finished 11th on the table narrowly avoiding relegation.^[15]

Batley Bulldogs (DR loan)

On 20 Jun 2024 it was reported that he had signed for Batley Bulldogs in the RFL Championship on DR loan^[16]

International

On 11 September 2019 Mustapha was called up for the Nigeria 60-man training squad.^[17]

Club statistics

Appearances and points in all competitions by year

Club	Season	Tier	App	T	G	DG	Pts
Leeds Rhinos	2019	Super League	1	0	0	0	0
	2020	Super League	2	0	0	0	0
	2022	Super League	6	1	0	0	4
	Total		9	1	0	0	4
→ Featherstone Rovers (loan)	2018	Championship	1	0	0	0	0
→ Dewsbury Rams (loan)	2019	Championship	2	0	0	0	0
→ Newcastle Thunder (loan)	2019	League 1	7	3	0	0	12
→ Hull Kingston Rovers (loan)	2021	Super League	11	0	0	0	0
→ Bradford Bulls (loan)	2022	Championship	8	0	0	0	0
Castleford Tigers	2023	Super League	16	0	0	0	0
	2024	Super League	14	0	0	0	0
	Total		30	0	0	0	0
→ Batley Bulldogs (DR)	2024	Championship	2	0	0	0	0
Career total			70	4	0	0	16

As of match played 19 September 2024

References

1. RL Record Keepers' Club
2. Rugby League Project
3. "Meet Elliot Wallis - The explosive Hull KR winger called up by new Nigerian national team". Mirror. 4 September 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
4. Heppenstall, Ross (26 July 2022). "Muizz Mustapha discusses Leeds Rhinos future after living a 'dream come true'". Leeds Live. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
5. "Challenge Cup: Leeds Rhinos 78-6 Workington Town". BBC. 12 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
6. "Leeds forward Muizz Mustapha joins Hull KR on loan after extending Rhinos stay". www.loverugbyleague.com. Retrieved 15 Dec 2020.
7. "Catalans Dragons blast past Hull KR and into their first Super League Grand Final". www.theguardian.com.
8. "Barrie McDermott's 2021 Betfred Super League season review". www.skysports.com.
9. "Super League: Warrington Wolves 0-19 Hull KR - Robins set up a semi-final at Catalans". www.bbc.com.
10. "Leeds loan three players to Bradford". Love Rugby League. 2 Dec 2021. Retrieved 2 Dec 2021.
11. "Muizz Mustapha: Castleford Tigers sign prop on one-year deal from Leeds Rhinos". BBC Sport. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
12. McKenna, Ben (3 October 2022). "Castleford Tigers sign forward Muizz Mustapha from Leeds Rhinos". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
13. "Muizz Mustapha moves to the Tigers". Castleford Tigers. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
14. Cartwright, Phil (26 February 2023). "Super League: Castleford Tigers 6-24 St Helens - club world champions claim win in domestic opener". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
15. "Castleford Tigers ace Alex Mellor delivers brutally honest assessment of 'awful' season; 'We've massively underperformed'". www.loverugbyleague.com.
16. Drew Darbyshire (20 Jun 2024). "Super League loan watch: Wigan Warriors prop makes short-term Leeds Rhinos switch". Love Rugby League.
17. "60 Man Nigeria Squad". www.nigeriarugbyleague.org. 11 Sep 2019. Retrieved 24 Dec 2020.

External links

• Leeds Rhinos profile
• Super League profile