Caitlan Johnston (born 12 January 2001) is an Australian rugby league footballer who plays for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL Women's Premiership.
Primarily a er, she previously played for the Sydney Roosters and has represented the Indigenous All Stars and Prime Minister's XIII.
Background
Born in Belmont, New South Wales, Johnston is of Indigenous Australian descent and began playing rugby league for Windale at age 11.
Playing career
In 2018 and 2019, Johnston played for the Newcastle Knights in the Tarsha Gale Cup, captaining the side in 2019.
On 15 February 2019, she started at for the Indigenous All Stars in their 4–8 loss to the Maori All Stars.
On 21 June 2019, she started at for New South Wales under-18 in their 24–4 win over Queensland in the first ever Women's under-18 Origin game. She scored a try and was named Player of the Match. In July 2019, Johnston joined the Sydney Roosters NRL Women's Premiership team.
In Round 1 of the 2019 NRL Women's season, she made her debut for the Roosters in their 12–16 loss to the New Zealand Warriors. On 11 October 2019, she started at for the Prime Minister's XIII in their 22–14 win over the Fiji Prime Minister's XIII. On 25 October 2019, she was named 18th player for Australia for their Test match against New Zealand.
On 22 February 2020, she started at for the Indigenous All Stars in their 10–4 win over the Maori All Stars. In March 2020, Johnston joined the Central Coast Roosters NSWRL Women's Premiership team. Johnston suffered a knee injury while playing for the Central Coast and was ruled out of the 2020 NRL Women's season.
On 20 February 2021, she represented the Indigenous All Stars in their 24–0 loss to the Māori All Stars.
On 1 July 2021, Johnston was announced as the Newcastle Knights' first ever NRLW signing. In February 2022, she was announced as one of the club captains.
In round 1 of the delayed 2021 NRL Women's season, Johnston made her club debut for the Knights against the Parramatta Eels.
In late September 2022, Johnston was named in the Dream Team announced by the Rugby League Players Association. The team was selected by the players, who each cast one vote for each position.
On 2 October 2022, Johnston played in the Knights' 32-12 NRLW Grand Final win over the Parramatta Eels.