Michael Alaalatoa to lead the Manu Samoa

By Vaelei Von Dincklage • 29 May 2021, 6:00AM

The Crusaders prop, Michael Alalatoa, will spearhead the Manu Samoa for the first time, and also for their test series from June to July against Maori All Blacks and Tonga.

Lakapi Samoa has announced the squad that will be taking on Maori All Blacks and Tonga during the test series. The Manu Samoa head coach, Vaovasamanaia Seilala Mapusua has made his decision and has selected his team for the upcoming tests.

"This is a very important initial campaign for us playing the qualifier against Tonga and also privileged to play the Maori All Blacks as a lead up to the qualifier. This will be my first campaign and considering the impacts of Covid-19 it wasn’t an easy task selecting the Manu. However, I am very confident we have the best players to represent the jersey and earn us a spot for the RWC2023," he said.

The Manu Samoa schedule for the test matches are, on the 26th of June they are to play against Maori All Blacks at Sky Stadium in Wellington New Zealand, followed by another test at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland New Zealand, then another one with Tonga on the 10th of July in Auckland. The last one will be at FMG Stadium in Hamilton NZ against Tonga as well.

“We are all excited to named our Manu Samoa since 2019, like Tonga, we hope to get another chance to qualify for the RWC2023 in France. The Covid-19 Pandemic has a huge impact on international rugby and we acknowledged the continuous support from NZR for allowing us this opportunity to carry out fixtures against Maori All Blacks to warm up for our RWC Qualifier against Tonga,” says Lakapi Samoa Chief Executive Officer, Faleomavaega Vincent Fepuleai.

Lakapi Samoa also announces its partnership with Dynasty Sport and reveals the New Manu Samoa Jersey for the June July 2021 Test Series.

The jersey consists of a new design with Samoan traditional patterns which reflects Samoa’s culture and heritage. The New Manu Samoa Jersey is on sale online on the link: manusamoashop.com

“Dynasty Sport is proud to Partner with Lakapi Samoa and excited about the upcoming Pacific in Union Test Series. It’s going to be quite the Rugby Spectacle. We are also excited about the new Manu Samoa jersey design, which has a strong Samoan design and imprint element which we hope everyone will love,” says the Manager of Dynasty Sport, Peter Rakich.

Lakapi Samoa also announces its partnership with Westview Events who will manage the Match Day Event for each match in June-July 2021 Test Series.

“Westview Events is humbled to be partnering with Lakapi Rugby to promote 2 key matches as part of this historic tour of New Zealand - the Maori All Blacks v Samoa at Sky Stadium, Saturday, June 26 and Tonga v Samoa at Mount Smart Stadium, Saturday, July 10," Jason Hill, the Director of Westview Events.

"We look forward to working with our new Samoan friends, the Maori All Blacks, Tonga, and the entire New Zealand rugby community to deliver the best events we can,” he added.

The June-July 2021 Pacific in Union Test Series will be the first international hosted by Lakapi Samoa outside of Samoa.

Manu Samoa squad are: