Jordan Mailata perhaps never foresaw the events that have unfolded over the past week, when he joined the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs u18s side back in 2015.
But 10 years later, he stands a Super Bowl Champion, having only played American football for eight years.
The Philadelphia Eagles landslide victory against the Kansas City Chiefs saw Mailata, a left tackle, become the first-ever Australian to win a Super Bowl ring.
There was a huge outpouring of ecstasy, jubilation and joy as the Eagles undid the heartache of their 2023 Super Bowl defeat by the Chiefs, exacting revenge on Andy Reid’s side.
While celebrating the victory, Mailata, 27, was seen cutting one interview short.
And there was a heartwarming reason behind why he ran off early into the post-game interview.
Jordan Mailata cut an interview short following the Eagles’ Super Bowl win so he could savour the moment with his wife, Niki
Mailata picked Niki out of a crowd of people after full-time before the pair made their way towards each other and embraced with a big hug
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‘I’m on a time schedule, you know,’ he said during the interview.
He later revealed that he wanted to celebrate his epic achievement with his wife Niki Ikahihifo-Bender Mailata.
‘I’ve got to go shower, you know … I’m taking my wife with me.’
A huge party ensued inside the dressing room, with players chugging beers, spraying champagne and lighting up cigars as Mailata, who hails from Bankstown in New South Wales, admitted he did not sleep after the victory.
Mailata’s move to play in the NFL has brought with it huge success, but is also how he met his wife, Niki.
In fact, back in 2018, he had, according to Honey, been out for lunch with a few friends at Philadelphia’s Reading Terminal Market.
It was here that he first met Niki, an intellectual property lawyer who hails from Alaska.
She had been in Philadelphia to celebrate her dad’s 50th medical school reunion and the pair began dating.
Mailata and Niki have been married since 2023 and met in Philadelphia back in 2018, just as the Australian was making his move to the NFL
The 27-year-old made history becoming the first Aussie to ever win a Super Bowl тιтle
Four years later, Mailata proposed to his beau on the exact spot they met, underneath an arch of white roses and they would later be married in 2023, in a stunning ceremony.
Last Sunday, a heartwarming moment also took place in the immediate aftermath of the Eagles’ Super Bowl win, with Mailata picking his partner out in a crowd of people on the pitch at the Superdome.
Niki appears from a crowd of people and jumps on her husband, giving him a huge hug.
She published the video on her Instagram with the caption: ‘From being the first draft pick with absolutely no American Football experience to the first Australian to start in and win a Super Bowl.
‘Just unreal. Proud doesn’t even begin to cover it.’
