Samuela Fainu (born 12 January 2004) is an Australian rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward for the Wests Tigers in the National Rugby League.
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Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Samuela Fainu | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 12 January 2004 Guildford, New South Wales, Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 194 cm (6 ft 4 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 109 kg (17 st 2 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Second-row | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield Westfields Sports High School | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relatives | Manase Fainu (brother) Sione Fainu (brother) Latu Fainu (brother) Tevita Amone (uncle) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
He previously played for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the NRL.
Background
editFainu was born in Guildford, New South Wales. He is of Tongan and Maori descent. His uncle, Tevita Amone, played for the Western Suburbs Magpies and the North Queensland Cowboys.[2]
He attended Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield as well as Westfields Sports High School and played his junior rugby league for the Guildford Owls.[citation needed]
He has three brothers, Manase, Sione, and Latu, who were all signed to the Manly club.[3]
Playing career
editFainu started at prop in the 2021 Harold Matthews Cup winning side, including scoring a second-half try in the Grand Final win over Parramatta Eels. Fainu earned a promotion to Manly’s SG Ball Cup (Under 19s) team in 2022, making seven appearances for two tries, two try assists, four line-break assists, 13 offloads and 150 tackles (21.4 per game).
Fainu pushed ahead to the Jersey Flegg Cup (Under 21s) later in the year whilst still eligible for Under 19s, playing seven games with three tries including a double on debut in round 14. Fainu made the NSW Under 19s squad in 2022.
Fainu made his first grade debut from the bench in his side's 12−6 victory over the Wests Tigers at Campbelltown Stadium in round 8 of the 2023 NRL season.[4] In July 2023, Fainu signed a four-year deal worth $2 million to join the Wests Tigers ahead of the 2024 NRL season. Fainu made his club debut for the Wests Tigers in round 2 of the 2024 NRL season against Canberra.[5][6] Fainu played 23 games for the Wests Tigers throughout the 2024 NRL season as the club finished with the Wooden Spoon for a third consecutive year.[7]
References
edit- ^ Rugby League Project
- ^ Proszenko, Adrian (28 June 2018). "Man on a mission: Manly rookie Fainu ready to heed the call". The Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ "Sea Eagles set to break NRL record and pay 16-year-old more than $1M in historic new deal". Fox Sports. 15 November 2021. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
- ^ "Brother's keeper: How Manase Fainu's jailing prompted sibling's NRL debut". The Sydney Morning Herald. 20 April 2023.
- ^ "'Big risk': Tigers slammed for 'desperate' $4m play for 'unproven' teenage brothers". www.foxsports.com.au.
- ^ "'They never saw eye to eye': How sibling rivalry became Tigers telepathy for debutant". www.smh.com.au.
- ^ "'Either the best or worst game all year': NRL world 'can't look away' from Spoon Bowl". www.foxsports.com.au.