18 - 20

38 - 21

23 - 13

U20

15 - 12

U20

45 - 40

U20

55 - 33

32 - 31

35 - 15

17 - 22

14 - 68

35 - 16

34 - 19

Sione Kalamafoni to exit Scarlets for the ProD2

By Ian Cameron

12 Feb 2023

Sione Kalamafoni of Scarlets is tackled by Bradley Roberts of Ulster during the United Rugby Championship match between Ulster and Scarlets at the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast. (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Tongan veteran Sione Kalamafoni’s departure from Welsh URC side Scarlets has been confirmed. The 34-year-old back row will join ProD2 side Vannes on a two-year deal that will see him through to 2025.

The 6’5, 121kg forward – who can play both in the second and back row – played three editions of the World Cup with his selection, in 2011, 2015 and 2019.

Kalamafoni joins the likes of Paul Surano from Rouen, Alex Arraté from Stade Français and Jules Le Bail from La Rochelle in linking up with RC Vannes next season.

Sione was a big favourite during his three-year spell at Leicester Tigers and before that spent five seasons with Premiership rivals Gloucester. His first experience of English rugby had been with Nottingham in the RFU Championship.

Capped 37 times by Tonga, he made his international debut 15 years ago and has featured for the islanders in three Rugby World Cups, delivering a memorable man-of-the-match display in the stunning upset over France in 2011.

✍️ Avec notre partenaire @Interaction_Job, le recrutement se poursuit. 𝙎𝙄𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙆𝘼𝙇𝘼𝙈𝘼𝙁𝙊𝙉𝙄 sera Vannetais la saison prochaine pour deux ans, jusqu’en 2025.
Plus d'informations 👉 https://t.co/QPrMYroJZ2 #RCV #BreizhRugby pic.twitter.com/KWJYWkLyaG
— Rugby Club Vannes (@RugbyClubVannes) February 12, 2023

The 34-year-old has won player of the season awards at Gloucester and Tigers, where he made more carries (721) than any player in the Premiership. He also made the fifth most tackles. Only one other player has made more than 500 carries and 500 tackles during that time.

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JD Kiwi 3 minutes ago

Did innovative England emerge strongest from the Six Nations?

I almost dropped my phone when I read that Wales had closed their national academy ten years ago. What an incredible piece of self sabotage. The results speak for themselves.

In this article from last year I noted that Italy started a national academy and created a golden generation… but a new president shut it down a couple of years ago. Sheer folly.

https://www.theroar.com.au/2024/03/29/how-italy-revolutionised-their-youth-system-to-produce-a-golden-generation-and-what-australia-can-learn-from-it/

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JW 19 minutes ago

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How did Blackadder go Graham?

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OJohn 33 minutes ago

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They are smart enough not to hire kiwi head coaches. They aren’t that insecure.

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OJohn 33 minutes ago

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Tom 1 hour ago

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I was very critical of Borthwick's selection before the match because it didn't fit how they've played for the rest of the tournament. Credit to Borthers though, he delivered on his pre-match talk (for once). The squadron of loosies worked phenomenally. Hope he sticks to it with it. England have an incredible selection of backrows to choose from, let's keep getting them involved and play with some quick ball! Of course we'll need to kick more against stronger opposition but this could be a very innovative blueprint to build on. I'm not convinced Dingwall is the man, he is a decent facilitator but I'd rather have Slade.

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RB 1 hour ago

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Instead of being negative around Ford, why not be positive about what Fin Smith has delivered to bring this team to where it is now. Saturday’s win was due to another consummate performance from F Smith (plus his mates). Ford was excellent but it was icing on the cake at that point.