Leicester Fainga'anuku
Leicester Fainga'anuku (born 11 October 1999) is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays for Tasman in the Mitre 10 Cup competition and the Crusaders in Super Rugby.[1] His position of choice is wing.[2]
Date of birth | 11 October 1999 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Place of birth | Nukuʻalofa, Tonga | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 109 kg (240 lb; 17 st 2 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Nelson College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notable relative(s) | Tima Fainga'anuku (brother) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Early career
Fainga'anuku was educated at Nelson College, where he was captain of the school's 1st XV rugby team.[3]
Tasman
Fainga'anuku was named in the Tasman Mako squad for the 2018 Mitre 10 Cup and made his debut in Round 8 when Tasman played Otago at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin coming off the bench in a 21–47 win for the Mako.[4] He was part of the Tasman team that won the Mitre 10 Cup for the first time in 2019. He was again part of the Mako side that won the 2020 Mitre 10 Cup.
Crusaders
Fainga'anuku was named in the Crusaders squad for the 2019 Super Rugby season signing him on a three year deal.[5][6] He made his debut off the bench against the Brumbies in Round 11 but that was the only game he played in the 2019 season as the Crusaders went on to win their third Super Rugby title in a row.[7] In 2020 Leicester made 11 appearances as the Crusaders won Super Rugby Aotearoa.
North v South
Fainga'anuku was named in the South Island squad for the North vs South rugby union match in 2020, coming off the bench in a 38-35 win for the South.
Moana Pasifika
Fainga'anuku was named in the Moana Pasifika squad to play the Maori All Blacks in late 2020, starting in the number 14 jersey in a 28-21 loss.
References
- "Leicester Fainga'anuku". Mako.nz. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- "Leicester Fainga'anuku". itsrugby.co.uk. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
- "Faingaanuku brothers, Tima and Leicester, dream of wearing the black jersey". Stuff. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
- "2018 Tasman Mako Squad Announced". Mako.nz. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- "Crusaders lock in highly touted Leicester Faingaanuku for three years". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
- "2019 Crusaders squad named". Stuff.co.nz. 31 October 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
- "Leicester Faingaanuku". crusaders.co.nz. Retrieved 7 October 2020.