Jack Tafa Lam (born 18 November 1987) is a New Zealand-born, Australian-raised rugby player who plays as a flanker for

Moana Pasifika Moana Pasifika is a rugby union team made up of players from various Pacific island nations as well as New Zealand or Australian born players of Pasifika heritage, including Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and the Cook Islands. The team was originally crea ...

and internationally for

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

. Lam played seven matches for Tasman in 2008 before moving north to

Waikato Waikato () is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsul ...

in 2009. He has international experience with the Samoan national team as well with the Australian Secondary Schools side. He has signed with

for the

2022 Super Rugby Pacific season The 2022 Super Rugby Pacific season (known as Harvey Norman Super Rugby Pacific in Australia and DHL Super Rugby Pacific in New Zealand) is the 27th season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams ...

Early life

Lam was born in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

but moved to

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

at an early age and then to Canberra where he attended St Edmund's College. He made the Australian Secondary Schools' side in 2004 and 2005. He is a cousin of former

All Black The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987, ...

and Samoan international

Pat Lam Patrick Richard Lam (born 29 September 1968) is a rugby union coach and former player. He is currently Director of Rugby at Bristol Bears in England's Premiership Rugby. Born in New Zealand, he represented New Zealand in schools and under-21 ...

. Lam's first year in the Australian Schools team was at

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics * Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentri ...

, before he was converted into a loose forward the following year and made the team again as a flanker.

Domestic career

Lam made his debut for Tasman in the

2008 Air New Zealand Cup The 2008 Air New Zealand Cup was a provincial rugby union competition involving 14 teams from New Zealand. Matches started on Thursday 31 July 2008, and continued until the final on 25 October 2008. This season was the third of the expanded co ...

competition, starting at number seven against

Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runaw ...

. After seven starts for Tasman in 2008 Lam returned to the

to be part of the 2009 Chiefs Wider Training Squad. He also went on to make his first appearance for

, again starting in the number seven position against

Southland Southland may refer to: Places Canada * Dunbar–Southlands, Vancouver, British Columbia New Zealand * Southland Region, a region of New Zealand * Southland County, a former New Zealand county * Southland District, part of the wider Southland Re ...

. Lam continued his career with

during the

2010 ITM Cup The 2010 ITM Cup season was the fifth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on July 29, when Taranaki hosted Northland. It involved the top fourteen rugby unio ...

, mainly starting at openside flanker. At the end of 2010, Lam signed with the

Super Rugby franchise the

Hurricanes A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

for 2011. Lam started at openside flanker in every match in his rookie year in Super Rugby. He returned for another full season with

in the

2011 ITM Cup The 2011 ITM Cup season was the sixth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on July 14, when Otago hosted North Harbour. It involved the top fourteen rugby uni ...

. Lam made the switch to Europe in 2014, joining then Greene King IPA Championship side

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

. In December 2015 he signed a new contract for two more seasons with Bristol (until 2018).

References

External links

*
Bristol profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lam, Jack Living people New Zealand people of Samoan descent New Zealand rugby union players Hurricanes (rugby union) players Rugby union flankers 1987 births Rugby union players from Hamilton, New Zealand Tasman rugby union players Waikato rugby union players Samoa international rugby union players Bristol Bears players Expatriate rugby union players in England New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England Moana Pasifika players Green Rockets Tokatsu players Samoan rugby union players