Kyle Godwin

Kyle Godwin (born 30 July 1992) is a former professional rugby union player who played as a centre. He has also played at wing and fly-half on occasion. Godwin began, and has played most of his career with, the Western Force in the Super Rugby. He has played for Super Rugby rivals the Brumbies, as well as Connacht in Ireland and Lyon in France.

Kyle Godwin

Godwin with the Western Force in 2013
Born	Kyle Willets Godwin (1992-07-30) 30 July 1992 (age 33) Harare, Zimbabwe
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	99 kg (15 st 8 lb)
School	Aquinas College, Perth
University	University of Western Australia
Rugby union career
Position(s) Centre, Wing Senior career Years Team Apps (Points) 2014−2016 Perth Spirit 8 (20) 2017–2018 NSW Country Eagles 15 (18) 2018–2020 Connacht 38 (62) 2022–2024 Lyon 40 (10) Correct as of 21 April 2024 Super Rugby Years Team Apps (Points) 2012–2016 Western Force 52 (47) 2017–2018 Brumbies 24 (30) 2020–2022 Western Force 30 (25) Correct as of 28 May 2022 International career Years Team Apps (Points) 2012 Australia U20 5 (21) 2016 Australia 1 (0) 2024 Zimbabwe 2 (0) Correct as of 16 November 2024

In 2016 Godwin made his international debut for Australia against France in the 2016 Autumn Internationals. He did not make another appearance for the team and was capped with Zimbabwe in 2024, qualifying via birth-right.

Early life

Godwin was born in Zimbabwe and moved with his family to Perth in the Australian state of Western Australia at 8-years-old, where he played for the Associates Rugby Club.^[1] He first came onto the scene when he was selected for the Australian Schoolboys team which toured Great Britain and Ireland in 2009. He was also selected to represent Australia U20s that competed in the 2012 IRB Junior World Championship in South Africa.^[2]

Career

In 2012, Godwin made his Super Rugby debut for the Western Force against the Queensland Reds in Perth.^[3] He went on to play 52 games for the Western Force before moving to the Brumbies. During his time at the Force, he won "Rookie of the Year", Members "Most Valuable Player" (MVP), and the "Nathan Sharpe Medal", named after team veteran Nathan Sharpe. He moved to Canberra in 2016, signing for the Brumbies, where he played 24 games over two seasons (2017, 2018).

On 20 March 2018, it was announced that Godwin was to play in the Pro 14, having signed for Irish club Connacht for the 2018–19 season.^[4] The contract being of two-year duration initially.

On successful completion of his two-year contract with Connacht, Godwin returned to his home team of the Western Force.^[5]

International career

Godwin played international age-group rugby for Australia up to Under 20s. He gained his one senior cap for the Wallabies against France on 19 November 2016, playing the full game at inside centre.^[6]

In 2024, having served the required 'stand-down' period of five years or more since last playing for his original international side, Godwin received his first call-up for the country of his birth. He made his debut for Zimbabwe against the United Arab Emirates on 6 November 2024, coming on in the second half as a replacement at inside centre, joining a backline featuring his former teammate from the Western Force, Ian Prior.^[7]

Playing statistics

Super Rugby

As of 10 July 2020^[8]

Season	Team	Games	Starts	Sub	Mins	Tries	Cons	Pens	Drops	Points	Yel	Red
2012	Force	3	0	3	46	1	1	0	0	7	0	0
2013	Force	14	14	0	1111	2	2	2	0	20	0	0
2014	Force	10	10	0	797	1	0	0	0	5	0	0
2015	Force	16	16	0	1228	1	0	0	0	5	0	0
2016	Force	9	7	2	565	2	0	0	0	10	0	0
2017	Brumbies	11	11	0	799	2	0	0	0	10	1	0
2018	Brumbies	13	10	2	292	4	0	0	0	20	1	0
2020	Force	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total		76	61	7	4825	10	3	2	0	82	1	0