New Toa Samoa coach Ben Gardiner has welcomed former Samoa captains Nigel Vagana and Tony Puletua back into the fold as members of his staff for the upcoming Pacific Championships.
Gardiner, who is an assistant to Penrith coach Ivan Cleary, will take charge of the World Cup finalists and he has immediately taken steps to instil a strong Samoan culture within the camp by appointing Vagana, Puletua and Willie Poching.
The trio are among seven members of Gardiner’s staff with Samoan heritage, including strength and conditioning coach Mark Taufua, team manager Hannan Laban, doctor John Ward and cultural leader Freddie Tuilagi.
Poching played for Samoa at the 1995 and 2000 World Cups and coached the Pacific nation in 2009 at the start of a coaching career which culminated with him taking charge of Wakefield in the 2022 Super League.
Vagana and Puletua had long and successful Test careers with New Zealand before choosing to represent their Samoan heritage at the 2008 World Cup in a move which helped launch the rise of the Pacific nations.
“I wanted to create a connection with the ex-players and those guys were captains of Samoa who have played at the highest level,” Gardiner told NRL.com.
“They want the team to do well, and they want the team to be competitive, and to win.
“They talk about the legacy from wearing the jersey to returning to the jersey. There is a big thing about giving service to those who have served you.”
Poching and Puletua will be assistant coaches, while Vagana will take on the role of cultural and wellbeing manager, which he previously performed for the Kiwis.
“Nigel and Tony had illustrious playing careers, and Willie has gone on to have a long career coaching career as well,” Gardiner said. “They have got experience of being involved in camps as well.
“Tony has been doing a bit of coaching for the Rugby League Samoa NSW arm and he took a team to the Pacific Games in 2019.
“He has got a wealth of experience, played a lot of games in the NRL and Super League but most importantly he is committed to the cause for Samoa.
“Willie coached for a long time in England and has moved to New Zealand recently for family reasons.
“He coached Samoa at the start of his coaching career but said he wasn’t ready for the job and would like to give back to Samoa now that he has more experience.”
The new look Samoa coaching team have a list of about 45 eligible players and are currently in the process of finalising their squad for the Pacific Championships.
Samoa will play in the opening match of the tournament against Australia in a re-match between last year’s World Cup finalists at Townsville’s Queensland Country Bank Stadium on October 14.
The next match for Samoa is against New Zealand at Eden Park on October 21 before the Kangaroos host the Kiwis in Melbourne on October 28. The two highest ranked nations will meet in the final at Hamilton on November 4.
Immense Siva Tau sets the tone
Gardiner also has another former Samoa international on his staff in Taufua, the former Knights and Sharks forward, while Laban - who played for the Knights - has Samoan heritage through his grandparents.
The son of Kiwi broadcaster and legendary Wainuiomata Lions mentor Ken Laban, he spent 12 years as a player, coach and administrator with Wynnum-Manly Seagulls and is now head of people and governance at the Dolphins.
Gardiner will remain as coach of the Māori All Stars for next February's annual clash with the Indigenous All Stars and he believes there is a link between the Pacific teams.
“What we are doing is about ensuring that synergy between rugby league, high performance and culture,” Gardiner said.
“We need to get those three things right and that is what we are planning to do with those other guys around me who can support that.”
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