Frank Solomon
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Frank Solomon (30 May 1906 – 21 December 1991) was an American-born New Zealand
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 ...
player. He has played national provincial rugby for Auckland and international rugby for the
All Blacks 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, ...
. Considered a pacific pioneer in New Zealand rugby, Solomon became the first
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); ...
n to play for the All Blacks. He was the older step-brother of former All Black Dave Solomon and the great-uncle of former All Black Josh Kronfeld. Solomon was the first
U.S. national Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...
of Samoan descent to play for a New Zealand national rugby team. The second was
Jerome Kaino Jerome Kaino (born 6 April 1983) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. In 2004, he was named IRB International Under-21 player of the year. In 2011, he was named the New Zealand Rugby player of the year, finishing ahead of Richie McCaw ...
in 2004.


Early life

Solomon was born on 30 May 1906 in the
American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...
n capital of
Pago Pago Pago Pago ( ; Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the territorial capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, which is American Samoa's main island. ...
as the oldest of two. He was born 6 years after 'Eastern Samoa' (present day
American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...
) became a
U.S. Territory In the United States, a territory is any extent of region under the sovereign jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States, including all waters (around islands or continental tracts). The United States asserts sovereign rights for ...
, which divided Samoa into two administrative territories according to the
Tripartite Convention The Tripartite Convention of 1899 concluded the Second Samoan Civil War, resulting in the formal partition of the Samoan archipelago into a German colony and a United States territory. Forerunners to the Tripartite Convention of 1899 were the ...
. The governor of American Samoa at the time of Solomon's birth was Rdml. Charles Moore from Decatur, Illinois. While the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
occupied the eastern portion, the
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
occupied the western portion (consisting of Savaii and
Upolu Upolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is long and in area, making it the second largest of the Samoan Islands by area. With approximate ...
) known as
German Samoa German Samoa (german: Deutsch-Samoa) was a German protectorate from 1900 to 1920, consisting of the islands of Upolu, Savai'i, Apolima and Manono, now wholly within the independent state of Samoa, formerly ''Western Samoa''. Samoa was the las ...
at the time. It wasn't until 1914,
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 ...
occupied the German territory without resistance from the Germans. Thus changed the name from German Samoa to
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); ...
until 1997. Solomon's father was the mayor of the former Fijian capital of
Levuka Levuka () is a town on the eastern coast of the Fijian island of Ovalau, in Lomaiviti Province, in the Eastern Division of Fiji. Prior to 1877, it was the capital of Fiji. At the census in 2007, the last to date, Levuka town had a population ...
and during that time where he and his step-brother Dave were educated, Solomon and his family moved to the
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); ...
n capital of Apia before finally reaching to
Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...
, New Zealand in 1921. It was at that time Solomon spent his last school days at Seddon Memorial Technical College (now
Auckland University of Technology Auckland University of Technology (AUT) ( mi, Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau) is a university in New Zealand, formed on 1 January 2000 when a former technical college (originally established in 1895) was granted university status. AUT ...
).


International rugby career

Solomon had achieved the unusual distinction of winning a New Zealand Maori jersey. It wasn't unusual on the strength of his playing ability, as he had plenty of that, or for the fact that he wasn't a regular in first-class player, as that was also a common scenario at the time, but for the fact nobody had bothered to check that he was actually Maori. With Islanders being something of a novelty in New Zealand back then, it was automatically assumed his skin owed its colour to Maori blood, and into the team he went. He was one of the better players on that 1927 internal tour, and nobody caught up with the fact he was there under false pretences. After appearing in seven of the first eight matches, he had to pack his bags and go back to Auckland to avoid being sacked from his job. Solomon won his test cap in 1931 making him the first ever Samoan to wear the All Black jersey. He gave a strong display at Eden Park in a match New Zealand was lucky to win. He toured Australia in 1932, winning the test spot after missing an ordinary All Black effort in the first match, and became, in combination with Hugh McLean, one of the most impressive units in the team as well as having the distinction of leading the All Black Haka before the game. Surprisingly, that was the end of his international football, although he remained an Auckland regular until shortly before the war, eventually playing 54 games in the blue and white. Strongly built, at 6 ft (1.83m) and a tick under 14 stone (89 kg), he was often mentioned as one of Auckland's better forwards. He, like brother Dave, had three trials for the 1935-36 team to Britain, but, unlike Dave, Frank missed out. There was a feeling this may have been a mistake, especially early in the tour when the All Blacks were still struggling to come to grips with the three-fronted scrum and an experienced head may have proved invaluable. Frank Solomon played his last representative matches for Auckland in 1939, before turning out a few times for the Barbarians and ending his career with a few service matches in England.


Military career

Wartime saw Frank serving with the 2NZEF where he quickly became a Company Sergeant Major – and later a commissioned Lieutenant.


Death

Frank Solomon died in Auckland on 21 December 1991, aged 85.


Legacy

A delightful character, he rose to a high position in Samoan society and, when the big migration to New Zealand started in the 60s and 70s, he was a man of some influence in this country. The many people who were proud to call him a friend remember him as a real gentleman. The Solomon influence in rugby extended far beyond his playing days; he was a figure of importance to the Polynesian players who later came to Ponsonby and his All Black jersey, presented to the Western Samoa Rugby Union in 1986, was a treasured memento. Former All Black flanker Josh Kronfeld is a great-nephew, and no doubt reminded some long-time followers of his famous relative.http://stats.allblacks.com/asp/profile.asp?ABID=816


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solomon, Frank 1906 births 1991 deaths New Zealand people of Samoan descent New Zealand rugby union players New Zealand international rugby union players People from Pago Pago New Zealand Army officers New Zealand military personnel of World War II Rugby union flankers