For 20-year-old Mijo Piteša, last Saturday's Manu Samoa Rugby World Cup match against Chile was his own "homecoming", after moving to the Netherlands in 2020.

His father is Croatian and his mother is Samoan hailing from the village of Vaiala. He has been studying abroad for three years and prior to Samoa's RWC match in France, he didn't have much interaction with Samoans anywhere in Amsterdam, until he got to the match last Saturday.

A supporter and proud cousin of Manu Samoa scrum-half Ereatara Enari, Mr. Piteša said he flew into France from the Netherlands, just hours before the game started to watch his cousin play. 

“During the game, I felt at home, I’ve been here for nearly three years, and it is rare to see islanders,” he said. “It felt very nice, it felt very heartwarming to see people passionate about our island - especially on the other side of the world where it’s not so common."

But being around fellow Samoans was the only thing he missed, he said he also missed Samoan food, especially sapasui. Growing up in South Auckland, New Zealand, he was fortunate to be surrounded by a diverse community and he attended De La Salle College, which is a also school in South Auckland with strong Samoan linkages. 

Mr. Piteša then migrated to Amsterdam, Netherlands in 2020 to pursue studies in psychology at Leiden University, one of the world's leading universities. He doesn't know of any other Samoans in his university but is sure he is the only Kiwi attending. 

"I mean, I can't really fact-check it but I'm sure I would have met an islander if they were here [Leiden University]," said Mr. Piteša. 

The Aotearoa-born Samoan hasn't been back to the island since 2017 when he competed in the Vailima Alopaopao International Paddling Festival. But he is keen to come home soon. 

For now, it is all about Manu Samoa and how it fares at the RWC in France, and he says it is a nice feeling to be surrounded once again by his own people.