Samuel Lameko Panapa is a New Zealand former professional

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 1980s and 1990s. He represented three countries in his career: Tokelau, New Zealand and Western Samoa. Panapa played his club football in Auckland as well as England, where he won several titles with the champion Wigan side of the 1990s.

Playing career

A Ponsonby Pony Junior and Ponsonby-Maritime Senior from 1969 - 1982, joined Glenora Bears in 1983 for two season before signing an off-season contract with UK Club Sheffield Eagles 1984-5. Returning to NZ in 1985 signed with

Te Atatu Roosters The Te Atatu Roosters is a rugby league club based in Te Atatū, New Zealand. They participate in the Auckland Rugby League competition. They currently have 25 teams across schoolboy, junior and senior grades. The Roosters premier team began t ...

in the Auckland Rugby League competitions,''1986 Lion Red Rugby League Annual'',

New Zealand Rugby Football League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.Coffey and Wood '' ...

, 1986. p.101 Panapa played club football in Britain for

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington t ...

. He represented

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, a ...

at the

1986 Pacific Cup The 1986 Pacific Cup was the 3rd Pacific Cup, a rugby league tournament held between Pacific teams. The tournament was hosted in the Cook Islands and eventually won by the New Zealand Māori side, who defeated Western Samoa in the final. Backgrou ...

, and later 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 ...

. During the

1991–92 Rugby Football League season The 1991–92 Rugby Football League season was the 97th season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Fourteen teams competed from August, 1991 until May, 1992 for the Stones Bitter Championship, Premiership Trophy and Silk Cut Challen ...

, Panapa played for defending champions Wigan at centre in their

1991 World Club Challenge The 1991 World Club Challenge (marketed as the Foster's World Club Challenge due to sponsorship from the brewer) was contested by 1990–91 RFL Championship winners, Wigan and 1991 NSWRL season premiers, the Penrith Panthers. The match was pl ...

victory against the visiting

Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrit ...

, scoring his first try for the club. During the 1992–93 Rugby Football League season Panapa played from the interchange bench for defending RFL champions Wigan in the

1992 World Club Challenge The 1992 World Club Challenge match was contested by the 1991–92 Rugby Football League season champions Wigan and the 1992 NSWRL season's premiers, the Brisbane Broncos. The match took place on Friday night, 30 October in England, during th ...

defeat by the visiting

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite c ...

. Sam Panapa played as an Interchange/ Substitute, i.e. number 15, (replacing

Phil Clarke Philip Clarke (born 16 May 1971) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. A Great Britain and England international representative back-rower or , he played his club rugby league in England ...

on 9-minutes) in

's 15-8 victory over

Bradford Northern The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is pre ...

in the 1992–93 Regal Trophy Final during the 1992–93 season at Elland Road,

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

on Saturday 23 January 1993, and played as an Interchange/ Substitute, i.e. number 14, (replacing Neil Cowie on 30-minutes) in the 2-33 defeat by

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins th ...

in the 1993–94 Regal Trophy Final during the 1993–94 season at Elland Road,

on Saturday 22 January 1994. He played as substitute in both the 1993 and 1994 Challenge Cup finals victories against Widnes and Leeds at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

, scoring a try in each final. After the

1993–94 Rugby Football League season The 1993–94 Rugby Football League season was the 99th ever season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Sixteen teams competed from August 1993 until May 1994 for a number of titles, primarily the Stones Bitter Championship. Season ...

Panapa travelled with defending champions

to Brisbane, playing at centre in their

1994 World Club Challenge The 1994 MMI World Club Challenge was a replay of the 1992 World Club Challenge, with 1993–94 Rugby Football League season champions Wigan facing the 1993 NSWRL season premiers, the Brisbane Broncos, this time in Australia. Wigan were cle ...

victory over Australian premiers, the

. Sam joined Salford in 1994–95 Rugby Football League season, and helped them attain Super League status following a Grand Final victory over Keighley Cougars at Old Trafford. Following that game Sam announced his retirement and returned to Auckland Warriors as Fitness Coach. He played for

Western 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); ...

at the 1995 Rugby League World Cup.

Coaching career

Between 2006 and 2008 Panapa coached the Auckland side. In 2006 he was the Assistant Coach for the New Zealand Residents team.Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. , p.p.349-357.

References

External links

World Cup 1995 detailsSam Panapa
on the Wigan RL Fansite. {{DEFAULTSORT:Panapa, Sam Living people Auckland rugby league team coaches Auckland rugby league team players Expatriate rugby league players in England New Zealand expatriate rugby league players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand people of Samoan descent New Zealand people of Tokelauan descent New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players Richmond Bulldogs players Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league wingers Salford Red Devils players Samoa national rugby league team players Sheffield Eagles (1984) players Te Atatu Roosters players Tokelau national rugby league team players Wigan Warriors players 1963 births