Australia Sevens youngster signs three-year NRLW deal

NRLW’s Newcastle Knights have confirmed the signing of promising Australia Sevens talent Damita Betham on a three-year contract.

Betham has been earmarked for big things for most of her life and as a 12-year-old she broke a 25-year New South Wales 200m record.

She was a member of the Australia squad that won gold at the 2023 Trinidad and Tobago Commonwealth Youth Games.

In 2024 she was a was a member of the Australian Girls U18 Sevens squad that went to Global Youth Sevens.

Betham most recently took part in the opening round of Next Gen 7s’ 2026 season for the NSW Waratahs.

“Damita is a young, electrifying athlete, ready to take on the NRLW challenge with her speed, power and agility, signing a three-year contact to join the Knights, after a highly successful Rugby 7s career,” Ben Jeffries, Newcastle Knights’ head coach, said.

Western Force’s Tamika Jones has also swapped codes and signed for the Bulldogs.

A former Wallaroos call-up, the 22-year-old has had had several years of her career marred by injury. In 2024 she did not miss a Super W game and earned a recall to the Wallaroos.

She has joined the Sydney club for the 2026 season alongside former Auckland Blues back Daynah Nankivell.

“Tamika has been part of the Wallaroos system for the past few years and that experience shows in her professionalism and standards,” Brayden Wiliame, Bulldogs coach, said.

Betham and Jones have followed Arabella McKenzie and Layne Morgan in swapping the 15-a-side game for NRLW.