“I feel like I got more opportunity in League.” Mark Nawaqanitawase, on rugby league vs union.
Mark Nawaqanitawase has played both codes at the top level, and he has a view on which gave him more. “I feel like I got more opportunity in League,” he said.
He spent two seasons at the Sydney Roosters, won the NRL grand final and is now going back to union in Japan.
Which code would you rather play? League or union in the comments.
Rugby league vs union, from a man who has played both
Nawaqanitawase played 11 Tests on the Wallabies wing before he switched. He went through the differences on The Good, The Bad & The Rugby with Alex Payne, James Haskell and Mike Tindall this week.
He did not hedge on the move itself.
“Yeah, it’s been probably the best decision of my life to to do that.”
“it’s just amazing to as union players beforehand like you watch the [NRL], you want to try it out and all that and you know to be able to do that and feel and see the difference of the game itself um has been really cool to uh to learn which has actually helped me realize you know that I can do a lot more than what I thought I could.”
From August 2027 he can also choose between Australia, Fiji and Italy, which is why Mark Nawaqanitawase’s loyalty is already an argument in Australia.
“More opportunity in League”
The line that will annoy union fans came when the hosts asked whether league gave him more freedom to invent.
“I feel like I got more opportunity in League. I had a really good team, man, that that put me in the right spots to be able to try some things out. Yeah, I’d say more so that just I was given more opportunity where in Union, you know, may have not been given that.”
He did not blame a coach or a system. He talked about where the ball found him.
That fits how the two codes use a wing. In league the wing takes kick returns and carries out of his own end on every set, so he touches the ball constantly. In union a wing can go long spells without it, waiting for width that a ruck may never release.
The ball stays alive for longer
His first answer on the difference was about the clock.
“I said the game there’s what 50 51 minutes of ball in play. So you’re constantly running 10 kick chase and then you have to obviously yardage car like sorry you have to carry um into the wall and then you just got to keep backing it up.”
The official numbers are close to his. The NRL averaged 55 minutes 18 seconds of ball in play in 2021 and says 2025 set a new record.
Union Tests run shorter. The 2023 World Cup averaged 34 minutes 18 seconds. The 2024 Autumn Nations Series averaged 37 minutes 11 seconds, according to World Rugby figures reported by RugbyPass.
| Rugby league (NRL) | Rugby union (Test) | |
|---|---|---|
| Players on the field | 13 | 15 |
| Bench | 6 named, 4 used, 8 interchanges | 8 replacements |
| Try | 4 points | 5 points |
| Penalty goal | 2 points | 3 points |
| Drop goal | 1 point, 2 from beyond 40 m | 3 points |
| After the tackle | Play-the-ball, six tackles a set | Contested ruck |
| Scrum | 6 a side, rarely contested | 8 a side, contested |
| Lineout | None | Yes |
| Ball in play | About 55 minutes | About 34 to 37 minutes |
Sources: NRL.com 2026 rules and season statistics; RugbyPass, from World Rugby data.
He passed out on day two
That engine cost him. He walked into the Roosters as an Olympian and an 11-Test Wallaby, and it did not help.
“I I literally fainted second day. Like I was passed out. They had to like put me into the cold showers and just sit me under there. But that was a constant thing.”
“Like boys were passing out in preseason quite a bit. The first like two weeks of preseason, I was seriously questioning my decision.”
It did not click in preseason either. It took him most of the first half of a season.
“Honestly, I actually the time I felt comfortable was after eight rounds of footy.”
His summary of what league asks of a player became the episode’s line.
“You have to find comfort in the darkness.”
He is not at the Rugby League World Cup and does not miss it: “I’m I’m happy to not feel that darkness anymore as well.”
Why the tackle makes the difference
His “keep backing it up” is the play-the-ball. In league the tackled player gets up and rolls the ball back under his boot. The defence retreats ten metres, and the attack has six tackles before it hands the ball over. Then it happens again.
In union the tackle is where the ball is contested. Both sides drive over it at a ruck, and possession can change on any phase.
That is why union has the jackal and what Bakkies Botha did to Conrad Smith in every ruck. League replaces that fight with a wrestle to slow the play-the-ball by a second.
League’s hardest job is in the middle
He handed the credit to the forwards who carry into that line every set.
“especially the big boys in the middle I’ve got to give it to them especially the ones that do 80 minutes”
League middles hit up, get up, retreat ten metres and tackle, set after set, with no lineout to rest in. Union tight forwards carry more weight for the scrum and the maul, but they get more stoppages.
Defence was the gap he had to close
He arrived in league with a reputation as an attacker. Defence is where he says he changed most.
“Obviously personally defensive side of it you know I’ve gone to a game where you have to be quite defensively sound. Um but I’ve just learned a lot more in that department to you know which I’m excited to bring back.”
A league wing defends set after set and has to read the shift on his edge each time. That is far more defensive work than a union wing usually gets.
What Mark Nawaqanitawase takes back to union
Asked whether his league game can survive the switch back, he said yes, and named the reason.
“No, I feel like I can I can definitely bring it. Like I said, I’ve got a bit more of an engine where I might be able to put myself in more situations, too.”
Haskell, who played sevens, described what a tired defence looks like from the inside. When the opposition keeps the ball long enough, he said, “you were like I’m I’m happy for you to run over top of me here cuz I’ve got nothing left.”
Nawaqanitawase agreed that is where the engine pays.
“if you’re fit enough and good enough, you you can take those moments. Yeah. It’s a it’s a tough sport, man.”
Watch him in the last 20 minutes at the Saitama Wild Knights. If he is still coming off his wing looking for the ball when the forwards around him are spent, that is two years of league.
The full conversation is on The Good, The Bad & The Rugby’s YouTube channel, from 14:12. The figures above come from the NRL’s 2026 rule changes and the ball-in-play figures for Test rugby.
Your turn: league or union?
Nawaqanitawase says league gave him more of the ball and a bigger engine. Union fans will point out that his league game never had to win a lineout.
Which code gets more out of a player like him? League or union in the comments.
Frequently asked
What is the main difference between rugby league and rugby union?
The tackle. In league the tackled player plays the ball back and the attack keeps it for six tackles. In union the ball is contested at a ruck after every tackle.
How many players are in rugby league and rugby union?
Rugby league has 13 players a side on the field. Rugby union has 15.
How many points is a try in rugby league and rugby union?
Four points in rugby league and five in rugby union. A conversion is worth two in both.
Did Mark Nawaqanitawase faint at the Roosters?
Yes. He said he fainted on the second day of his first Roosters preseason and was put under a cold shower.
What did Mark Nawaqanitawase say about rugby league vs union?
He said he got “more opportunity in League” and called the switch “probably the best decision of my life”. He also said he is bringing a bigger engine back to union.
Which code has more ball in play?
Rugby league. The NRL averaged 55 minutes 18 seconds in 2021, against 34 minutes 18 seconds at the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
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