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'I was told straight, there's no way I could be paid more than a Scottish player'

By Ian Cameron
Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu (FRED DUFOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

Former Samoan international Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu claims Gloucester told the centre that he ‘couldn’t be paid more than a Scottish player’ when negotiating his contract at the club nearly a decade ago. Fuimaono-Sapolu was speaking in an extract from a new documentary – Oceans Apart – which is being produced by Pacific Rugby Players Welfare (PRPW), the organisation supporting professional players from the Polynesian islands.

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The PRPW Tweeted: “While it’s great to see rugby governing bodies showing support for the BLM movement, let’s not pretend that racism doesn’t exist in rugby at the detriment of minority players”, along with the accompanying video of Fuimaono-Sapolu, in which he claimed then the management at the time said he couldn’t pay the centre as much as a Scotland international.

“I played in England for seven years. I played in Japan for three years. I played in Bath for about three years and played for Gloucester for three and half years,” said Fuimaono-Sapolu. “In terms of Gloucester I did really well there. I won all the awards; I won players’ player, player of the year, try of the year, season ticket holder player of the year, fan player of the year, club player of the year.

“I won everything, so I thought you at my next contract I can ask for something pretty decent. And I was told straight, there’s no way I could be paid more than a Scottish player.

“So learning all those things, having those experiences, about what really goes on in rugby, and knowing that you are never what you achieve. I will always be the stereotype in their mind that I’m not worthy of a Six Nations (level) contract or a Tier 1 contract regardless of how I played.

“That’s one of the experiences that I had.”

“I went back to the changing room that day and told my Scottish mates, who played for Scotland, and they all went ‘what the hell are they doing telling you about our contracts?’

“We are not valued for what we achieve and how good we are. We’ll always be this low-value brown person. That’s just the way it goes. It’s cheap labor. Extraordinary rugby players for an ordinary price.”

The 39-year-old Fuimaono-Sapolu has consistently fought for the rights of Pacific Island players, believing that are poorly treated with the professional game. This has got him into trouble in the past, noticeably in 2011 during the World Cup.

Dan Leo’s Pacific Rugby Players Welfare is a not-for-profit organisation that works with over 400 Pacific Island rugby players worldwide. The latest part of their Oceans Apart documentary series will be released soon.

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Jon 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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john 11 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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