Radike Samo
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Profile
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Height:
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198cm
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Weight:
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117kg
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Date Of Birth:
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09/07/1976
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Place of Birth:
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Fiji
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Rugby Career
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Senior Club:
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GPS
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Stats
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Provincial Rugby Caps:
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30
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Provincial Rugby Points:
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25 (5t)
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Provincial Rugby Debut:
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May 2010 v Hurricanes, Wellington
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Super Rugby Caps:
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65 (30 Reds, 35 Brumbies)
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Super Rugby Points:
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45 (9t), (25 Reds, 20 Brumbies)
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Super Rugby Debut:
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May 2010 v Hurricanes, Wellington (2000 v Reds for Brumbies)
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Test Rugby Caps:
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23
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Test Rugby Points:
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15 (3t)
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Test Rugby Debut:
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2004 v Scotland
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After a blockbuster 2011 campaign for Radike Samo, the dynamic St.George Queensland Reds backrower endured a slower than usual start to the 2012 Super Rugby season as he battled a shoulder complaint.
However, once back to peak health and conditioning, the rampaging Fijian was re-called into the Reds matchday squad during a late season charge, where they finished the regular season with six consecutive wins and qualified for back-to-back finals series. He finished the season with 11 caps to his name, bringing his career Queensland tally to 28.
Such was the impression of Radike at the end of the Reds Australian Conference winning season that he was again selected for Australia, where he featured heavily at No.8 during the Rugby Championship.
His selection on the international stage came after his meteoric resurgence in 2011 was dubbed the sporting comeback of the year, with the 35-year-old, 117kg Fijian earning selection in the Wallabies Tri Nations and World Cup squads after a powerhouse season with the premiership winning Reds.
Radike made his stunning return to Test Rugby in 2011 against South Africa, an amazing 2,456 days after he last represented Australia off the bench against Scotland at Glasgow on 20 November, 2004. He was also the first player at the RWC to play for his side in both the forwards and in the backs. Reds coach Ewen McKenzie plucked Radike from semi-retirement in late 2010 as injury cover for their sidelined hard-nosed skipper James Horwill and he was later rewarded for his stellar performances with a fulltime contract in 2011.
Radike played the best Rugby of his career during the Reds 2011 campaign by giving the backrow a real x-factor in the 15 matches he appeared in during the season. Those efforts saw Samo reach 50 Super Rugby games in the final regular season match against the Chiefs in Waikato – and he enters 2012 with 52.
His comeback year reached new heights when Radike made an astonishing return to the Wallaby colours for the first time since 2004. Before joining the Reds, Fijian-born Radike had previously played in 35 Super Rugby games and scored four tries for the Brumbies between 2000 and 2006. He also starred in the Brumbies’ 2004 championship campaign.
Following his Test debut for the Wallabies in 2004 against Scotland, Radike added a further five Tests that year while still contracted to the Brumbies.
DID YOU KNOW?
Samo won the International Rugby Players Association’s Try of the Year for his long-range classic in the Wallabies Tri-Nations win over the Kiwis in Brisbane in 2011. He proved there was still plenty of youth in his legs when he covered an almost identical distance – 60 metres – in a stunning intercept try against the Western Force in round two of 2012.
***Updated 14/05/2013***