Paul Ngauamo
Ngauamo representing Oyonnax during the Top 14
Full namePaula Mark Ngauamo
Date of birth (1990-02-19) 19 February 1990 (age 34)
Place of birthChristchurch, New Zealand
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight122 kg (269 lb; 19 st 3 lb)
SchoolChristchurch Boys' High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Hooker
Current team Castres
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2010–2011 Canterbury 11 (0)
2014–2015 Oyonnax 20 (5)
2015–2017 Mont-de-Marsan 26 (5)
2017–2020 Agen 65 (15)
2021– Castres 43 (0)
Correct as of 28 August 2023
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2010 New Zealand U20 5 (5)
2014– Tonga 27 (10)
Correct as of 28 August 2023

Paula Mark Ngauamo (born 19 February 1990) is a professional rugby union player who plays as a hooker for Top 14 club Castres. Born in New Zealand, he represents Tonga at international level after qualifying on ancestry grounds.

Club career

In 2010 Ngauamo played with Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship.[1]

In 2012, he went to Australia to compete in the Shute Shield with West Harbour RFC . The following season he returned to New Zealand and played as an amateur with Sydenham Rugby.[2]

In 2014, when he was initially supposed to join French club Bergerac in Fédérale 1, he finally joined Oyonnax in Top 14 as Neil Clark's medical replacement.[3][4]

At the end of the 2014-2015 season, he signed for two seasons at Stade Montois in Pro D2.[5]

In 2017, he signed with SU Agen as a medical joker for Marc Barthomeuf.[6] In January 2018, after strong performances, he extended his contract until the end of the season as an "extra player".[4][7] In April of that same year, he further extended his commitment with the Agenais club until 2020.[8]

In January 2021, after extra-sporting incidents, he was released from his contract with Agen and immediately joined Castres Olympique.[9][10]

International career

Ngauamo played for the New Zealand national under-20 rugby union team in the 2010 IRB Junior World Championship.[11]

He made his debut for Tonga in on 7 June 2014 for a match against Samoa. He was later selected for the Tongan squad at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.[12] He played three games in the competition against Georgia , Namibia and New Zealand. He was suspended for three weeks for a dangerous tackle in the Pool match against New Zealand on 9 October.[13][14]

In 2019, he was retained in the Tongan group to compete in the World Cup in Japan.[15] He played three games in this competition, against Argentina , France and the United States.[16]

References

  1. ^ Hamish Bidwell (22 July 2010). "Ngauamo gains in confidence with Canterbury". Stuff. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  2. ^ "New Brighton clear favourites". Stuff. 5 April 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  3. ^ "Paula Ngauamo qualifié comme joker médical à l'US Oyonnax" (in French). Le Progres. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Agen. Paula Ngauamo : «Mon premier club en France fut Bergerac. J'y suis resté six jours...»" (in French). La Depeche. 15 December 2017. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  5. ^ "Stade Montois : Ngauamo s'engage pour deux ans" (in French). Sud Ouest. 7 May 2015. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  6. ^ "TRANSFERTS - SU Agen : Paula Ngauamo joker médical de Marc Barthomeuf" (in French). Rugbyrama. 8 June 2017. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  7. ^ "Le talonneur joker médical Paula Ngauamo bientôt joueur supplémentaire au SU Agen" (in French). La Depeche. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  8. ^ "McIntyre toujours là mais pas de « facteur X »" (in French). La Depeche. 20 April 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  9. ^ David Reyrat (5 January 2021). "Agen : remercié, Ngauamo file à Castres et vend ses maillots du SUA sur internet" (in French). Le Figaro. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  10. ^ "Ngauamo a signé à Castres" (in French). Rugbyrama. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  11. ^ "New Zealand Under 20 squad named". allblacks.com. 29 April 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  12. ^ "Profile". Official Site 2015 Rugby World Cup. 17 September 2015. Archived from the original on 22 September 2015. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  13. ^ "Disciplinary update - Paula Ngauamo (Tonga)". rugbyworldcup.com. 12 October 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  14. ^ "Paula Ngauamo banned for Dan Carter tackle, Ireland's Sean O'Brien cited". Stuff.co.nz. 13 October 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  15. ^ "Rugby World Cup 2019: Tonga 'fixated' on playoffs dream, says coach Toutai Kefu". Stuff. 2 September 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  16. ^ "Paula Ngauamo Tonga". ESPn Scrum. Retrieved 26 June 2022.

External links

Castres – current squad
Tonga squad – 2015 Rugby World Cup
Tonga squad – 2019 Rugby World Cup
Tonga squad – 2023 Rugby World Cup
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