Maurie Fa'asavalu (born 12 January 1980) is a former professional

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 it ...

and

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 11 ...

footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. He has played representative level rugby union (RU) 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); ...

, and at club level for Taula Apia Rugby Union, Harlequins and

Oyonnax Oyonnax () is the second most populated commune in the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. Oyonnax lies in a valley of the Jura Mountains in the far north of Ain. It is near the Parc naturel régional du Ha ...

, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and at club level for St. Helens. He was selected for the Great Britain national rugby league team squad in 2007, after living in England for 4 years. He returned to rugby union in October 2010, having signed for Harlequins for the 2010–11 English Premiership season. He then transferred to

in France. More recently he has joined West Park St Helens as player/ coach.

Rugby union career

Fa'asavalu played for

at the

2003 Rugby World Cup The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup. Originally planned to be hosted by India, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the Indian Rugby Union and Rugby World Cup ...

. He was signed by the then St. Helens coach

Ian Millward Ian "Basil"/"Minibus" Millward (born 22 August 1960) is an Australian rugby league coach, occasional pundit and former player. Millward is now the assistant coach of St George Illawarra in the NRL Millward is the former head coach of Wigan, S ...

in the winter of 2003 after a series of outstanding performances playing at flanker for Samoa in the

. On his return to rugby union, he also featured in the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Harlequins managed to lure the

(RL), and Samoan (RU) international back to rugby union. "A player of Maurie's talent and ability will be a great asset to Quins," said Quins' Director of Rugby Conor O'Shea, "I have no doubt that he will be able to make an immediate impact on returning to union. He will bring experience and a new dimension to our options and is exactly the type of person we want at this club." He started for Harlequins in their 2011–12 English Premiership Final victory over Leicester Tigers. On 4 April 2014, Maurie signed for French side

who compete in the

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...

on a two-year contract. On 4 Oct 2021 it was reported that he had turned out for West Park St Helens in their local derby win over Liverpool St Helens

Rugby league career

Fa'asavalu made his début on 13 March 2004 against

Leeds Rhinos The Leeds Rhinos are a professional rugby league club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The club was formed in 1870 as Leeds St John's and play in the Super League, the top tier of English rugby league. They have played home matches at Headin ...

in a 24 – 14 victory at

Knowsley Road Knowsley Road in Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside, was the home ground of St. Helens from 1890 until its closure in 2010. St Helens Town FC played their home fixtures at Knowsley Road from 2002 until 2010. For a period, the venue also hoste ...

. Fa'asavalu took some time to adjust to

, but developed into an important part of the St. Helens squad in 2006. He was however used primarily as an impact player, starting most games from the interchange bench. Fas'asavalu was unlucky not to receive the Lance Todd Trophy for his performance in the 2006 Challenge Cup Final victory, where he scored a try in the 2006 and his performance against

Huddersfield Giants Huddersfield Giants are an English professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, the birthplace of rugby league, who play in the Super League competition. They play their home games at the John Smiths Stadium which is sha ...

earned widespread praise. St. Helens fans were treated to Fa'asavalu's victory dance in both the 2006 Challenge Cup Final and the Grand Final for 2006's

Super League XI Engage Super League XI was the official name for the year 2006's Super League season in the sport of rugby league in Europe. Bradford Bulls were looking to retain the title they won in Super League X. The competition kicked off the weekend after ...

. His block busting runs and inimitable

try celebration In Rugby football, a try celebration is the practice of celebrating the scoring of a try. The celebration may be performed by the tryscorer (most notably), his or her teammates, the manager or coaching staff and/or the supporters of the team. Whil ...

s saw him develop a real following on the terraces at Knowsley Road. In total he scored 10 tries in 28 games during the 2006 season. St Helens reached the 2006 Super League Grand final to be contested against

Hull FC Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

, and Fa'asavalu played from the interchange bench in Saints' 26–4 victory. This was followed by 9 tries in 30 games in the 2007 season. He played in 2007's Super League XIII Grand Final, 2008's Super League XIII Grand Final, and 2009's Super League XIV Grand Final defeats all against the

. On 27 October 2007, Fa'asavalu scored on his début for Great Britain against New Zealand in Huddersfield, helping the British team to a 20–14 victory. Five minutes after he came on as a substitute in the 18th minute, Fa'asavalu used his great stature to break through 3 New Zealand players to score the try. Fa'asavalu was selected for the England squad to compete in 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 ...

tournament in Australia.

Group A Group A is a set of motorsport regulations administered by the FIA covering production derived vehicles intended for competition, usually in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, Group A vehicles ...

's first match against

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

he played from the interchange bench in England's victory. He played 3 games for the England team in the World Cup, in the process breaking his hand in the defeat against Australia. He played in the

2009 Super League Grand Final The 2009 Super League Grand Final was the 12th official Grand Final and conclusive and championship-deciding match of the Super League XIV season. It was held on Saturday 10 October 2009, at Old Trafford, Manchester, and was contested by defen ...

defeat by the

at Old Trafford. He missed a major part of the 2010 season after being injured. His last game for St. Helens was in the home victory over Leeds Rhinos.

References

External links

St Helens profileMaurie Fa'asavalu pictures and profileSaints Heritage Society profileSamoans make switchHuddersfield 12–42 St HelensDave Woods Cup final verdictWorld Cup Select XVScores in GB Debut
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fa'asavalu, Maurie Living people 1980 births England national rugby league team players Samoan expatriate rugby union players in England Samoan expatriate rugby union players in France Great Britain national rugby league team players Harlequin F.C. players New Zealand expatriate rugby league players in England Oyonnax Rugby players People educated at St Paul's College, Auckland People from Tuamasaga Rugby league props Samoa international rugby union players Samoan sportspeople Samoan emigrants to New Zealand Samoan rugby league players Samoan rugby union players St Helens R.F.C. players Rugby union flankers 2003 Rugby World Cup players 2011 Rugby World Cup players 2015 Rugby World Cup players