Niko Kirwan
| Personal information | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Niko Mario Patrick Kirwan | |||||||
| Date of birth | 4 September 1995 | |||||||
| Place of birth | Auckland, New Zealand | |||||||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | |||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | |||||||
| Team information | ||||||||
Current team | Trapani | |||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||
| Auckland City | ||||||||
| Waitakere United | ||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||
| 2016–2017 | Team Wellington | 18 | (1) | |||||
| 2017–2018 | Mestre | 21 | (0) | |||||
| 2018–2019 | Reggina | 35 | (1) | |||||
| 2019–2021 | Reggiana | 50 | (0) | |||||
| 2021–2025 | Padova | 102 | (6) | |||||
| 2025– | Trapani | 0 | (0) | |||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||
| 2021– | New Zealand | 10 | (1) | |||||
|
| ||||||||
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 5 July 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 4 July 2024 | ||||||||
Niko Mario Patrick Kirwan (born 4 September 1995) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Italian Serie C Group C club Trapani and the New Zealand national team.
Club career
Team Wellington
Kirwan signed to play for Team Wellington in the New Zealand Football Championship for the 2016–2017 season.[1]
Mestre
On the 28 July 2017, Kirwan signed a one-year deal with Mestre who play in the Italian Serie C.[2]
Reggina
On 8 July 2018, Kirwan signed a one-year deal with an option for another two with Reggina who play in the Italian Serie C.[3]
Reggiana
On 16 August 2019, he signed a 2-year contract with Reggiana.[4]
Padova
Kirwan signed with Serie C side Padova in 2021.[5]
Trapani
On 3 July 2025, Kirwan moved to Trapani, also in Serie C.[6]
International career
On the 15 March 2018, Kirwan was called up for the New Zealand national football team as part of its 24-man squad for their friendly against Canada.[7]
He made his international debut with New Zealand in a 2–1 friendly win over Curaçao on 9 October 2021.[8] He scored his first international goal three days later, a late winner against Bahrain.[9]
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Team Wellington | 2016–17 | Premiership | 16 | 1 | — | 7[a] | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 25 | 1 | |
| Mestre | 2017–18 | Serie C | 22 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | ||
| Reggina 1914 | 2018–19 | Serie C | 34 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 4[c] | 0 | 38 | 1 | |
| Reggiana 1919 | 2019–20 | Serie C | 23 | 0 | — | — | 1[d] | 0 | 24 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | Serie B | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 0 | |||
| Total | 46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 47 | 0 | ||
| Padova | 2021–22 | Serie C | 30 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 10[e] | 1 | 41 | 5 | |
| 2022–23 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1[d] | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24 | 31 | 1 | — | — | 7[f] | 1 | 38 | 2 | ||||
| 2024–25 | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 4[g] | 0 | 37 | 1 | |||
| Total | 95 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 2 | 120 | 8 | ||
| Career total | 213 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 29 | 2 | 254 | 10 | ||
- ^ Appearance in OFC Champions League
- ^ Appearances in New Zealand Football Championship play-offs
- ^ Two appearances in Coppa Italia Serie C; two appearances in Serie C Promotion play-offs
- ^ a b Appearance in Serie C Promotion play-offs
- ^ Six appearances; one goal in Coppa Italia Serie C; four appearances in Serie C Promotion play-offs
- ^ Appearance in Coppa Italia Serie C
- ^ Two appearances in Coppa Italia Serie C; two appearances in Supercoppa di Serie C
International goals
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 12 October 2021 | Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain | Bahrain | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
Personal life
Kirwan is the son of New Zealand All Black Sir John Kirwan.[2] He lived in Italy for 10 years which is where he got his love of football from and learnt Italian.[2] He is of Italian descent through his mother Fiorella.[10] He also holds Italian citizenship.[11]
Honours
Club
- Team Wellington
References
- ^ "All Blacks legend Sir John Kirwan's son Niko set for shock All Whites call-up - report". Stuff.co.nz. 10 March 2018. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- ^ a b c "Football: Bumpy road to professional football for Niko Kirwan". The New Zealand Herald. 29 July 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- ^ "Reggina, Niko Kirwan è un nuovo calciatore amaranto". Ottoetrenta. 8 July 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
- ^ "NIKO KIRWAN È UN GIOCATORE DELLA REGGIO AUDACE F.C." (Press release) (in Italian). Reggiana. 16 August 2019.
- ^ "Niko Kirwan è un giocatore del Calcio Padova" [Niko Kirwan is a Calcio Padova player]. Padova Calcio. 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
- ^ "Niko Kirwan è un nuovo giocatore del Trapani" [Niko Kirwan is a new player for Trapani] (in Italian). FC Trapani 1905. 3 July 2025. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
- ^ "John Kirwan's son Niko named in All Whites squad for Canada friendly in Spain". Newshub. 15 March 2018. Archived from the original on 15 March 2018. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- ^ "Football: Gutsy All Whites grind out impressive victory over Curacao on international return". Newshub. 10 October 2022. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
- ^ Voerman, Andrew (13 October 2021). "It's unreal: Niko Kirwan pops up late to score winning goal as All Whites beat Bahrain". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
- ^ "Kiwi footballer Niko Kirwan signs first professional deal with Italian third division side". Stuff. 28 July 2017.
- ^ Sport, Sky. "Il figlio di John Kirwan in prova al Mestre" (in Italian). Retrieved 24 March 2018.
External links
- Niko Kirwan at Soccerway
- Niko Kirwan at TuttoCalciatori.net (in Italian)