Samoa rugby team becomes most important team in centenary celebrations with 43-17 win over Tonga

Apia, Samoa – August 30, 2024 – Manu Samoa got its Pacific Nations Cup campaign back on track with a 43-17 win over Tonga at Apia Park, capping off the country’s centenary celebrations of rugby.

The win extended Samoa’s unbeaten home run against Tonga in Apia, moving them to the top of Group A with the bonus point win and level on five points with Fiji, but with one more game played.

Samoa led 17-0 at halftime and scored 26 more points to beat Tonga 6-0.

It was a perfect end to the centenary celebrations of Test rugby in the country, with events hosted by Rakapi Samoa lasting a full week.

Some of the former players who are now part of the Manu Samoa Old Boys Association watched the match against Tonga from the stands.

Watching from the stands were former Manu Samoa players, both local and a few from overseas who had come to join in the celebrations. These players make up the Manu Samoa Old Boys Association, most notably the 1991 World Cup team that captured the attention of the rugby world by defeating Wales and Argentina on their debut.

As part of the centenary celebrations, Rakapi Samoa recognised 680 people who have contributed in one way or another to the development of rugby since the game began in 1924.

The hat-giving ceremony began with the reading of the names of the original club formed in 1924 and the current Manu Samoa players.

The former Manu Samoa player congratulated the team after their win over Tonga at Apia Park.

Special awards were also given to all management teams, the administrative team, the medical team, the physio team and the development team in different years.

The keynote speaker was rugby legend Sir Tuifa Asina Brian Williams who gave a brief history of Samoan rugby and Manu Samoa’s struggles and achievements as a coach.

“Who can forget the 1991 World Cup when tens of thousands of Samoans watched the games at Apia Park,” he said.

He also spoke of their frustration with the then World Rugby Union (WRU) because Pacific Island teams were excluded from Super Rugby when rugby became professional.

Included are Sir Bryan Williams and Lucky Apple Wire.

Player loss to England
Tuifaasina said that in the process of professionalising rugby, Samoa lost some great players such as Pat Lam, Apolo Perelini, Junior Paramore and Fereti Tuilagi, the latter of whom was a very young player at the 1991 World Rugby Cup, who later went to England.

“After we finished our tour of England, Tuilagi decided to stay in England for some reason,” he said.

He said the Tuilagi “dynasty” of Ferretti, Alesana, Anitlia, Henry and Manu had made quite an impact on world rugby.

“A lot of our Pacific players ended up going overseas, which was one of the consequences of being excluded from Super Rugby,” Tuifa’asisina said.

That’s why he and others decided to create Moana Pasefika, so that gamers in the Pacific Islands could have a professional gaming platform.

Looking back, he recalled the names of some of the people he met during his coaching career, such as Tupua Tamasese Efi, then president of the Samoa Rugby Union, President Laauli Alan Grey, Tua Tagaloa Joe Annandale, Su’a Peter Schuster, Lemalu Tate Simi, Marina Schaffhausen, Richard Cook, Laki Uaea Apelu, Dr. Joe Ainuu, Ben Matalavea, Karren Sutton Epenesa Young, Jordan Salesa, George Meredith and many others. Meredith, Fay Richwhite and Bob Barlow.

In 2007, Sir Michael Jones became the coach of Manu Samoa, and Tuifa Asisina’s two sons also played for Manu Samoa.

He wished Samoan rugby all the best for the future.