Early years

A junior from Wellington's

Wellington Rugby League

Wellington Rugby League is the local sporting body responsible for the administration of Rugby league in the Greater Wellington region. It is responsible for the local competition of the same name, as well as its representative team, the Wellington rugby league team.- Local Senior Competition :The...

 Upper Hutt

Upper Hutt

Upper Hutt is a satellite city of Wellington. It is New Zealand's smallest city by population, the second largest by land area. It is in Greater Wellington.-Geography:Upper Hutt is 30 km north-east of Wellington...

, Lewis was signed by the Auckland Warriors in 1998 and moved to Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

. In Auckland he played for the Warriors unbeaten reserve grade side in 1998 and was good enough to be selected for the Junior Kiwis

Junior Kiwis

The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. They are not necessarily an age grade side, but the second national team behind the New Zealand national rugby league team. They are...

. He attracted some interest from Australian clubs in 1999 but opted to remain with the Warriors. His decision was rewarded as he finally cracked first grade

National Rugby League

The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...

 and played eleven games for the club. In the weeks he was not selected by the Warriors he played for Brisbane Souths in the Queensland Cup

Queensland Cup

The Queensland Cup is the premier rugby league football competition in the State of Queensland, Australia.It is a statewide competition with the majority of teams based in South East Queensland but also including sides based in Cairns, Mackay and Rockhampton.The competition began in 1996 as a...

 or Auckland North in the National Provincial Competition

1999 New Zealand rugby league season

The 1999 New Zealand rugby league season was the ninety second season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the National Provincial competition that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League....

. In 2000 he played for the Mt Albert Lions

Mt Albert Lions

The Mount Albert Lions are a rugby league club based in Mount Albert, New Zealand. The Lions home ground is at Fowlds Park. Their patron is the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark. In 2008 and 2009 the Lions won the Fox Memorial....

 in the Bartercard Cup

Bartercard Cup

The Bartercard Cup was the top level rugby league club competition in New Zealand from 2000 until 2007. For the entire life of the tournament it was sponsored by Bartercard. The cup was administered by the New Zealand Rugby League...

.

In Australia

Not wanted by the Warriors, Lewis moved to Australia in 2003, signing with the Penrith Panthers

Penrith Panthers

The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership, the top rugby league football competition in Australasia. For the 2012 NRL season they will be coached by Ivan...

. Here he played two first grade games and also turned out for the St Mary's Cougars in the NSWRL Premier League

NSWRL Premier League

The New South Wales Cup is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales previously known as the NSWRL Premier League. It has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve grade competition. It is now the premier open age competition in the state...

.

He left the Panthers in 2005, signing a one year contract with the Parramatta Eels

Parramatta Eels

The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, with their First Grade side playing their first season in the New South Wales Rugby Football League...

. He played in pre-season trials for the first grade team but spent the season in the Premier League. However his form was good enough to earn a new contract for 2006. In 2006 he returned to first grade, playing two games for the Eels. However he then returned to Premier League competition.

International

In 1999 he was selected by the New Zealand Māori

New Zealand Maori rugby league team

-See also:* New Zealand national rugby league team* New Zealand Māori rugby union team* New Zealand Māori cricket team-External links:* Google Books...

 and played against Great Britain

Great Britain national rugby league team

The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....

.

However in 2000 he decided to represent the Cook Islands

Cook Islands national rugby league team

-2008 World Cup Qualifying:See 2008 Rugby League World Cup qualifyingThe Cook Islands played Fiji, Tonga and Samoa in the Pacific pool of Qualifying for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup. Fiji and Tonga qualified, and Samoa earned a second chance in the repecharge round...

, playing in the 2000 World Cup

2000 Rugby League World Cup

The 2000 Rugby League World Cup was the twelfth staging of the Rugby League World Cup and was held during October and November of that year in Great Britain, Ireland and France...

.

In 2004 he was again the subject of a tug of war, with the NSW Māori and the Cook Islands both selecting him in their squads for the 2004 Oceanic Pacifica Rugby League Tournament. He opted to play for the Cook Islands.

In 2006 Lewis again represented the Cook Islands, playing in the team that failed to qualify

2008 Rugby League World Cup qualifying

There were ten places available in the 2008 Rugby League World Cup, held in Australia.-Qualified teams:Pacific6 teams qualified for the World Cup. 3 qualified automatically, with the top 2 in the Pacific qualifying group also reaching the finals. Samoa finished third in the Pacific qualifying group...

 for the 2008 World Cup

2008 Rugby League World Cup

The 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since the inauguration of the tournament in 1954, and the first since the 2000 event...

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