A tale of two brothers! Following the success of previous years where we had the Marschke brothers join our team, this season we welcome the Ogden brothers into the red & black family. Ofahiki Ogden signed on with our Knock-On Effect NSW Cup team in March 2025, joining his younger brother Israel who has returned for his second season with the Bears this year.
The Ogden brothers are of Tongan descent and originate from New Zealand. Ofahiki has played 58 NRL games first with Canterbury Bulldogs (2018 – 2021) and more recently with the Parramatta Eels (2022 – 2024). Younger brother Israel joined the Bears in 2024 coming across from the Wests Tigers & Western Suburbs Magpies where we had played 43 NSW Cup games.
“I’m really enjoying my time at the Bears. The club has a great culture, and the boys have been really welcoming” commented Ofahiki. “There’s a real sense of history here and I’m excited to be part of it” expressed Ofahiki when asked how he was settling into the club and team.
The brothers are four years apart on age and when prompted if playing with your little brother is a positive, Ofahiki responded “It’s pretty special. We grew up dreaming about playing together at a high level, so to actually do it now is unreal”. The brothers play and train together and “push each other on and off the field, and it definitely make the experience even better”.
Israel plays in a winger position while Ofahiki is a prop. The pair enjoy feeding off each other in game with Ofahiki jokingly commenting “Obviously I do the hard yards and Izzy is there to finish it off”. And having a big brother as a big prop forward has its positives “if the opposition picks on him, they will have me to deal with!”.
We look forward to watching the pair bring strength and speed to our NSW Cup side this season.
