Dane Gagai

Gagai's father, Ray, was a member of the Brisbane Broncos' squad in the 1989 NSWRL season.

He is also the cousin of former New Zealand test player Josh Hoffman, former Broncos player Wendell Sailor and former Broncos player Travis Waddell.

His brother Jacob Gagai plays for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL.

He attended Brisbane Boys' College where he played rugby union and then played his junior rugby league for Brisbane Wests before being signed by the Brisbane Broncos.

Dane Gagai (born 3 January 1991) is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a and er for the Newcastle Knights in the National Rugby League (NRL).

He has played for Australia and the New Zealand Maori at international level.

He previously played for the Brisbane Broncos and South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL.

He has played for the Indigenous All Stars, Queensland in the State of Origin series and the Prime Minister's XIII.

From 2009 to 2011, Gagai played for the Brisbane Broncos' NYC team, scoring 39 tries in 61 games.

At the end of 2010, he was named at in the 2010 NYC Team of the Year and played for the Junior Kangaroos against the Junior Kiwis.

In round 1, Gagai made his NRL debut for the Brisbane Broncos against the North Queensland Cowboys on the, scoring a try in the 16–14 loss at Suncorp Stadium.

Gagai finished his debut year in the NRL with 4 tries in 6 matches.

He was again named in the NYC Team of the Year, this time at.

On 19 March, Gagai re-signed with Brisbane on a two-year contract.

On 9 May, he was released from the contract due to disciplinary reasons.

On 28 May, Gagai signed a 2-year contract with the Newcastle Knights effective immediately.

In round 10 against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Gagai played his 100th NRL career game in the Knights' 0–62 loss at Hunter Stadium.

After the match, he was seen on camera crying and being embraced by teammate Tariq Sims.

Fox Sports commentators Andrew Voss, Jimmy Smith and Mark Gasnier commented on the incident: "Right there at the finish, I don't think I've ever seen the likes of that in all my time following rugby league," said Voss.

In Round 14 of the 2012 NRL season, Gagai made his club debut for the Newcastle Knights against the Canberra Raiders at, scoring a try in the Knights 32–16 loss at Hunter Stadium.

Gagai finished his first year in the Newcastle Knights with 12 matches and 5 tries.

On 22 May, Gagai re-signed with Newcastle on a two-year contract.

he finished the season with 23 matches and scoring 5 tries.

In August, Gagai rejected playing for New Zealand in the 2013 Rugby League World Cup, instead setting his sights to play for Queensland in State of Origin.

On 28 January, Gagai was banned from the Queensland Origin camp by Mal Meninga after a discipline breach.

In February, Gagai was selected in the Knights inaugural Nines squad.

In June, he was included in the Queensland Maroons extended 22-man squad but was later not chosen to make his debut for Queensland.

Gagai played in all of the Knights 24 matches, scoring 7 tries and kicking a goal.

In the pre-season, Gagai played for the Knights in the 2015 NRL Auckland Nines and the Indigenous All Stars in the annual All Stars match, playing off the interchange bench.

The Indigenous side won 20–6.

On 10 April, he re-signed with Newcastle on a two-year contract after strong interest from his former club Brisbane Broncos.

On 8 July, he made his State of Origin debut on the wing for Queensland in Game 3 of the 2015 State of Origin series, scoring the first try of the game, in Queensland's 52–6 win.

He finished the 2015 season having played in all of the Knights 24 matches, scoring 7 tries and kicking 2 goals as the club finished last.

On 26 September, he played for the Prime Minister's XIII against Papua New Guinea, playing at centre in his team's 40–12 win in Port Moresby.

On 13 February, Gagai again played for the Indigenous All Stars against the new World All Stars, playing on the wing and scoring a try in his team's 8–12 loss at Suncorp Stadium.

In 2017 he won the Wally Lewis Medal as State of Origin Player of the Series.

Earlier in his career he played as a.

Gagai was born in Mackay, Queensland, Australia.

He is of Torres Strait Islander heritage through his father's family (Yam Island and Badu Island people) and Ngati Pikiao Maori descent by way of his mother's ancestry.

Gagai was eligible to play for both Australia and New Zealand through parents of Indigenous Australian and Māori.