NextGen: The Estonia-born Castleford Tigers talent who made Super League history

Friday night was a special occasion for Akim Matvejev: when the Castleford Tigers teenager made his senior debut in the Super League clash at St Helens.

That he was born in Estonia before moving to England as a child adds huge intrigue to a story which has echoes of Leeds Rhinos star and fellow Eastern European Mikolaj Oledzki’s rise to prominence.

Matvejev, an imposing forward who only turned 18 last month, has shone in the Tigers’ academy and head coach Craig Lingard handed him his senior bow in their 40-4 defeat to Saints at the Totally Wicked Stadium on Friday evening.

Love Rugby League spoke to Castleford’s head of youth Rob Nickolay about the starlet’s considerable potential in an academy which is thriving again.

Background

Matvejev was born in the Estonian capital of Tallinn and is understood to have moved to England from his homeland in 2012.  

He went to Bruntcliffe Academy in Morley, Leeds and played his amateur rugby league at nearby Drighlington.

The strapping front-rower, who stands 6ft 3in, has only been involved in rugby league for around six years.

But Castleford snapped him up into their academy after beating off stiff competition from other clubs.

“Akim came to rugby league fairly late and we saw him play for Drighlington in a final when he played really well,” Nickolay told Love Rugby League.

“That was maybe two years ago now and there was no pressure on him signing for us because I think he just enjoyed playing with his mates at Drig.

“We invited Akim down to Castleford when there were a couple of other clubs interested in him at the time – they offered him money but he decided to come to us as a community-based player at first.

“I respected him massively for that and we were lucky to be able to bring him on board probably midway through the first year of the academy.

“We wanted to make sure that we earned his trust as well, so it’s quite some story.

“He got a handful of games and this year he’s been a mainstay for us really, having come on leaps and bounds since he first joined us.

“When I was doing his contract with his parents, it was clear he’s a proud Estonian.

“Hopefully he can fly the flag for and we can grow the game into other nations.

“When he first came to us, he was a very quiet, reserved and laid-back character but the boys have taken to him and he’s now a leader for us within the academy.

“When he speaks, people listen and he’s got a bit of an aura about him.

“He’s stepped up to the first-team squad and they have taken to him as well.”

Matvejev’s family are extremely supportive of him and are seen cheering him on from the sidelines at every game.

And on Friday, he made history when he became the first Estonia-born player in Super League.

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Scott Murrell link

Castleford assistant coach Scott Murrell hails from the Drighlington area and is involved with the local amateur club.

He has helped Matvejev to get to training at the Tigers from his local area and supporting his journey.

“Anyone who plays for Drig, Scott’s heavily involved with,” says Nickolay.

“He’s been fantastic from that point of view, getting Akim to and from from training.”

Matvejev has been studying at Leeds Building College alongside his training commitments at Castleford and will go full-time with the Tigers later this year.

He was one of 10 youngsters who in April were announced as having signed two-year contracts with Castleford, with a third-year option in the club’s favour.

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Style of play – imposing, athletic and a bit of a sponge

Standing well over 6ft, Matvejev has grown accustomed to not taking a backward step on a rugby league and is described by Nickolay as ‘an out and out forward’.

But since joining the youth ranks at Castleford, he has also developed a thirst for knowledge.

“Akim is a bit of a sponge, he’s always asking questions, and has a great group of players around him,” explains Nickolay.

“He really has developed with us and is very tough in the middle – he plays a helluva lot of minutes at academy and reserve level for that position.

“Akim is an out-and-out prop for us but, as he’s developing, he’s got some skill in him which we’re slowly starting to bring out in him.

“That’s quite exciting because he can ball-play as well, so we’ll see where that takes him.

“He might progress more into a 13, but at the moment he’s a prop forward.”

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Comparisons with Mikolaj Oledzki

Oledzki’s breakthrough at Headingley – a former diver and gymnast in his native Poland before moving to Yorkshire, taking up rugby league and playing for England – caught the imagination.

Nickolay certainly sees comparisons between Matvejev and the Leeds man, saying: “Absolutely, that’s naturally how we compared Akim’s situation at the time when we signed him.

“We talked about Mikolaj as being an example because Akim watches clips of other games and will be well aware of who Oledzki is.

“He’s got a role model in the game who he can look up to as someone who has widened the talent pool and opened it up to other communities.

“In the two years that Akim has been at Castleford Tigers, he’s probably got more and more confidence from being with us, so he’s a great lad and we’re really proud of him.

“We’ve been pushing for a while for him to get that first-team chance and he was close earlier on in the year.”

In the past year, Castleford have handed senior debuts to George Hill, Fletcher Rooney and Jenson Windley.

“If you look at who has won the Super League, they’ve all had at least eight homegrown players in their squads,” adds Nickolay.

“For us, that’s where we’re at in terms of ‘who’s going to be in our eight?’

“There was a picture of Jenson celebrating scoring his try against Hull FC the other week, so it’s quite a time to show how the Academy is actually servicing the club.

“Seeing Akim make his debut at Saints was a very special moment for the club.”

Player profile

Name: Akim Matvejev
Date of birth: 18/08/2006
Position: Prop forward
Senior debut: St Helens (A), 13/09/2024

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