Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

Leicester Tigers tell 6'4, 109kg Mapapalangi to put 'some size on'

By Online Editors
Valentino Mapapalangi

Leicester Tigers backrow Valentino Mapapalangi has been to put a bit of ‘size on’ over the summer break.

ADVERTISEMENT

The 6’4, 109kg backrow has just finished his first season at the club but Tigers coach Matt O’Connor wants him to bulk up over the summer.

Already a powerful ball-carrier, the Tonga international agreed a move to Tigers in the summer of 2017.

“They want me to put size on. That won’t be too hard to do, especially going with Tonga,” he told Leicester’s offical youtube account, LTTV.

“We’ve got touring and Fiji, so that shouldn’t be too hard to make. There’s a lot of food in Fiji, that’ll be an easy target to make!”

Continue reading below…

Video Spacer

“They want me to eat good food and put on good weight, not fat.”

The request suggests Matt O’Connor wants a bigger, heavier pack for next season’s Premiership campaign.

The backrow will represent Tonga at the 2018 Pacific Nations Cup which will be hosted in Suva, Fiji between 9 and 16 June.

ADVERTISEMENT

The World Rugby-funded tournament, which provides important high-performance preparation for teams ahead of Rugby World Cup 2019, sees Georgia joining Fiji, Samoa and Tonga.

Educated in Auckland, New Zealand, Mapapalangi spent two seasons in the Auckland youth teams and then two years with Waikato before joining Manawatu in 2015 as well as spending time with the Chiefs development squad.

He joined the Manawatu squad for the 2015 ITM Cup season, scoring three tries in nine appearances and attracting interest from the Hurricanes who invited him to join their wider training group during the 2016 Super Rugby pre-season.

His form also earned a place in the Tonga squad during 2016 and made his first Test appearance in a win over over Spain in November that year.

ADVERTISEMENT

After playing in the 2017 Mitre Cup with Manawatu in New Zealand and in the summer Tests for Tonga, Mapapalangi secured a move to Welford Road.

Video Spacer
ADVERTISEMENT

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
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”?

35 Go to comments
j
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.

44 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING 'Crikey': Son of league legend Martin Offiah picked by England U18s 'Crikey': Son of league legend Martin Offiah picked by England U18s
Search