Kane Gregory Thompson (born 9 January 1982) is a New Zealand-born Samoan

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 ...

player. He played for

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

in the

Mitre 10 Cup The mitre (Commonwealth English) (; Greek: μίτρα, "headband" or "turban") or miter (American English; see spelling differences), is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in t ...

. He currently plays for NOLA Gold 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).

Professional rugby career

He debuted for the Highlanders in 2006. He showed he was well capable of stepping up to the higher level and he had a strong 2006 season for Southland. In 2007 he represented Manu Samoa at the Rugby World Cup and went on to represent U.S. Dax in the Top 14 in France. Kane represented Samoa at the 2011 Rugby World Cup before taking up a contract with Chiefs in 2012, who became Super Rugby champions in that year. He played for the Chiefs in the 2012 Super Rugby, joining national teammate

Mahonri Schwalger Mahonri Schwalger (born 15 September 1978) is a former Samoan professional rugby union footballer who last played in New Zealand for the Chiefs in the Super Rugby competition and for Counties Manukau in the National Provincial Championship. He ...

. On 17 July 2014, Thompson signed for

Newcastle Falcons Newcastle Falcons is a rugby union team that play in Premiership Rugby, England's highest division of rugby union. The club was established in 1877 as the Gosforth Football Club. Around 1882 the club merged with the Northumberland Football Cl ...

who compete in the English

Aviva Premiership Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...

from the 2014–15 season. Kane also represented Samoa in the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England

References

External links

Newcastle Falcons Profile
1982 births Living people Yokohama Canon Eagles players Chiefs (rugby union) players Expatriate rugby union players in England Expatriate rugby union players in France Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Expatriate rugby union players in the United States Hawke's Bay rugby union players Highlanders (rugby union) players Manawatu rugby union players New Orleans Gold players New Zealand expatriate rugby union players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in France New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Japan New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in the United States New Zealand people of Samoan descent Newcastle Falcons players Rugby union players from Wellington City Samoa international rugby union players Southland rugby union players US Dax players Wellington rugby union players Taranaki rugby union players Rugby union locks {{NewZealand-rugbyunion-bio-1980s-stub