Tafeaga Junior Sa'u (born 18 April 1987) is a professional New Zealand and Samoan
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
player who plays as a for
Old Glory DC
Old Glory DC RFC is a professional rugby union team that is a member of Major League Rugby (MLR), founded in 2018. The organization is led by two local business leaders, former USA Eagles' Paul Sheehy and local club rugby player Chris Dunlavey. ...
in
Major League Rugby
Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...
(MLR). He also plays for the
Keighley Cougars
The Keighley Cougars are a professional rugby league club from Keighley in West Yorkshire, England who compete in League 1, the third tier of English rugby league. Keighley's home ground, Cougar Park has a capacity of 7,800.
History
Early y ...
in
RFL League 1
RFL League One (for sponsorship reasons currently known as the Betfred League One) is a professional rugby league competition based in the United Kingdom. Part of the British rugby league pyramid, the competition features clubs from England an ...
. He previously played for
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
and
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 Island, Manono an ...
at the international level.
He previously played for the
Newcastle Knights
The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...
and the
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are a rugby league club based in Melbourne, Victoria in Australia that participates in the National Rugby League. The first fully professional rugby league team based in the state, the Storm entered the competition in 1998. ...
in the
NRL
The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...
, the
Salford Red Devils
The Salford Red Devils are a professional rugby league club in Salford, Greater Manchester, England, who play in the Super League. Formed in 1873, they have won six Championships and one Challenge Cup. Their home ground since 2012 has been t ...
in the
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
, and the
Leigh Centurions
The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England, who compete in the Betfred Super League.
The club was founded in 1878, and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern R ...
in the
Betfred Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
.
He spent time in 2019 on loan from
Salford
Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
at
Wakefield Trinity
Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, between 1999 and 2016 the c ...
in the Super League. Sa'u has also played rugby union for
Old Glory DC
Old Glory DC RFC is a professional rugby union team that is a member of Major League Rugby (MLR), founded in 2018. The organization is led by two local business leaders, former USA Eagles' Paul Sheehy and local club rugby player Chris Dunlavey. ...
in
Major League Rugby
Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...
(MLR) in the United States.
Background
Sa'u was born in
Auckland, New Zealand
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
to Samoan parents from
Lauli'i and
Apolima
Apolima is the smallest of the four inhabited islands of Samoa. It lies in the Apolima Strait, between the country's two largest islands: Upolu to the east, and Savai'i to the west.
The island has one village settlement, Apolima Tai, with a po ...
.
He played his junior football for
Logan Brothers
Logan Brothers was a firm of boat and yacht design and builders. Although their Auckland yard lasted only from 1890 to 1910, it was the most significant yacht- and boat-building business in the Southern Hemisphere during its time, dominating the ...
in
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia before being signed by the
Canberra Raiders
The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby ...
.
Playing career
Early career
He played for Canberra's
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
team in 2006, scoring seven tries.
Newcastle Knights
Sa'u then signed a four-year contract starting in 2008 to be a part of the newly cleaned out
Newcastle Knights
The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...
.
In Round 13 of the
2008 NRL season
The 2008 NRL season was the 101st season of professional rugby league club competition in Australia, and the eleventh run by the National Rugby League. For the second year, National Rugby League teams, sixteen teams competed for the 2008 Telstr ...
he made his
NRL
The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...
début for the Newcastle club against the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilita ...
. He scored two tries on debut.
![Junior Sau](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Junior_Sau.jpg)
In June 2011, Sa'u re-signed with the Newcastle club for a further two years.
Melbourne Storm
On 18 August 2012, Sa'u was released from the final year of his Newcastle contract and signed with the
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are a rugby league club based in Melbourne, Victoria in Australia that participates in the National Rugby League. The first fully professional rugby league team based in the state, the Storm entered the competition in 1998. ...
on a one-year contract starting in 2013.
Salford Red Devils
In June 2013, it was announced that Sa'u had signed a two-year deal with
Salford
Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
in the Super League starting in 2014.
Scoring 12 tries in his début season with Salford, he was voted k'Supporter's Player of the Year' for 2014.
Wakefield Trinity
On 14 May 2019, after five years with the Salford club, Sau joined fellow
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
team
Wakefield Trinity
Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, between 1999 and 2016 the c ...
on an initial one month loan.
Leigh Centurions
Sa'u joined the
Leigh Centurions
The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England, who compete in the Betfred Super League.
The club was founded in 1878, and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern R ...
in the
2019 RFL Championship
The 2019 Rugby Football League Championship was a rugby league football competition played primarily in England but including teams from Canada and France. It is the second tier of the three tiers of professional rugby league in England, below ...
.
In round 18 of the
2021 Super League season
Super League XXVI, known as the Betfred Super League XXVI for sponsorship reasons, was the 26th season of the Super League and 127th season of rugby league in Great Britain.
The 2021 season was originally scheduled to begin on 11 March 2021, ho ...
, he scored two tries for Leigh in a 28-34 loss against
Hull Kingston Rovers
Hull Kingston Rovers are a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, England, that competes in the Super League, the top tier of British rugby league. The club has won five league championships, and one Challeng ...
.
Old Glory DC
Sa'u made the switch to
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
in 2022, joining
Major League Rugby
Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...
side
Old Glory DC
Old Glory DC RFC is a professional rugby union team that is a member of Major League Rugby (MLR), founded in 2018. The organization is led by two local business leaders, former USA Eagles' Paul Sheehy and local club rugby player Chris Dunlavey. ...
in the United States.
Keighley Cougars
At the conclusion of the
2022 Major League Rugby season
The 2022 Major League Rugby season is the fifth season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season began on February 5, 2022.
The Dallas Jackals made their debut this season, hav ...
Sa'u returned to the United Kingdom and rugby league and signed for League 1 team
Keighley Cougars
The Keighley Cougars are a professional rugby league club from Keighley in West Yorkshire, England who compete in League 1, the third tier of English rugby league. Keighley's home ground, Cougar Park has a capacity of 7,800.
History
Early y ...
until the end of the
2022 League 1 season.
International career
In 2008, Sa'u was named in the
Samoa training squad for the
2008 Rugby League World Cup
The 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since its inauguration in 1954, and the first since the 2000 tournament. The tournament was held in Australia from 26 October, culminating in the final b ...
but did not make the final squad.
In 2009, Sa'u was selected in the
New Zealand Kiwis
The New Zealand national rugby league team (Māori language, Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the ...
Four Nations squad and made his international début for the Kiwis against
Tonga
Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
.
In 2010, Sa'u was selected for
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
in the
2010 ANZAC Test. He was also again selected in the New Zealand squad for the
2010 Four Nations
The 2010 Rugby League Four Nations tournament was played in Australia and New Zealand in October and November 2010. The tournament was the second time the Four Nations had been held, following on from the 2009 edition held in England and France.
...
.
In 2013 Junior played 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 Island, Manono an ...
in the
Pacific Rugby League International
The Pacific Rugby League International is a rugby league test match that has been played between two Pacific Island nations during the National Rugby League's annual representative weekend since 2013. The fixture was held at Penrith Stadium for ...
against
Tonga
Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
. He was also called in the
2013 Rugby League World Cup
The 2013 Rugby League World Cup was the fourteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup and took place in England, Wales, France and Ireland. between 26 October and 30 November 2013.
It was the main event of the year's 2013 Festival of World ...
squad to replace the initially selected Roy Asotasi.
Personal life
He is a cousin to former
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. The team colours are maroon and white, while their namesake and logo is the sea eagle. They compete in Australia's premier rugb ...
player
Steve Matai
Stephen Matai (born 5 August 1984) is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who played in the National Rugby League (NRL )from 2005 to 2016. A New Zealand national representative centre, he played for Australian club the Ma ...
.
In 2009, Sa'u was praised for coming to the aid of a 15-year-old girl who was being assaulted in
Waratah, New South Wales
Waratah is a north-western residential suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, from Newcastle's central business district and bounded to the north by the Main North railway line. Waratah station was opened in 1858 and is served by NS ...
.
References
External links
Salford Red Devils profileNewcastle Knights profileSL profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sau, Junior
1987 births
Living people
Cessnock Goannas players
Eastern Suburbs Tigers players
Expatriate rugby league players in Australia
Keighley Cougars players
Leigh Leopards players
Melbourne Storm players
New Zealand expatriate rugby league players
New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Australia
New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England
New Zealand national rugby league team players
New Zealand sportspeople of Samoan descent
New Zealand rugby league players
New Zealand rugby union players
Newcastle Knights players
Old Glory DC players
Rugby league centres
Rugby league players from Auckland
Rugby union centres
Rugby union wings
Rugby union players from Auckland
Salford Red Devils players
Samoa national rugby league team players
Samoan rugby league players
Samoan sportspeople
Wakefield Trinity players