Jerome Kaino

Jerome Kaino
Full name Jerome Kaino
Date of birth (1983-04-06) 6 April 1983
Place of birth Faga'alu, American Samoa[1]
Height 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Weight 113 kg (249 lb)
School Papakura High School
St Kentigern College[2]
Rugby union career
Playing career
Position Flanker, No. 8
New Zealand No. 1050
Amateur clubs
Years Club / team
Auckland University
correct as of 1 September 2006.
Professional / senior clubs
Years Club / team Caps (points)
2012–2014 Toyota Verblitz 18 (10)
correct as of 8 September 2015.
Provincial/State sides
Years Club / team Caps (points)
2004–11, 2014– Auckland 54 (45)
Super Rugby
Years Club / team Caps (points)
2004–12, 2014– Blues 104 (40)
correct as of 12 June 2015.
National team(s)
Years Club / team Caps (points)
2004, 2006– New Zealand 67 (55)
correct as of 31 October 2015.

Jerome Kaino (born 6 April 1983) is an American Samoan-born New Zealand professional rugby union player. He plays for the Blues in Super Rugby and All Blacks internationally. In 2004, he was named IRB International Under-21 player of the year. He is a key member of 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup winning teams, becoming one of only twenty dual Rugby World Cup winners.

Kaino is the second U.S. national of Samoan descent to play for the All Blacks. The first was Frank Solomon in 1931.

Early life

Kaino was born on 6 April 1983 at Lyndon B. Johnson Tropical Medical Center in Faga'alu, located in the U.S. territory of American Samoa as the third of six children. In 1987 at the age of 4, he and his family relocated from their home village of Leone, Tutuila, to Papakura, Auckland. After settling in Papakura, he played junior rugby league for the Papakura Sea Eagles before switching to rugby union in secondary school at Papakura High School and Saint Kentigern College where he was offered a rugby scholarship.[1] He attended both schools with former All Black John Afoa.

If Kaino had not come to New Zealand following the lead of his uncle, his relatives assumed that he would have ended up in the United States Army.

Auckland and Blues career

Kaino made his Auckland debut in 2004 and his Blues debut in 2006. In 2012 it was announced that Kaino would be leaving the Blues for Japanese club Toyota Verblitz on a two-year deal.[3]

On 4 October 2013, Kaino announced he had re-signed with New Zealand Rugby Union, North Harbour and Auckland Blues on a two-year contract.[4] He was expected to return to New Zealand in February[5] in time for the beginning of the 2014 Super Rugby season.

International career

His first All Blacks game was the uncapped appearance against the Barbarians at Twickenham where he was named man-of-the-match. It was at that point, that he became the second American national to play for a New Zealand national team. The first American national was Frank Solomon in 1931 who was born in the American Samoan capital of Pago Pago. Kaino played his first two tests against Ireland in 2006.[6]

He is known to be a versatile player. In the Bledisloe Cup game on 31 July 2010, Kaino played lock for the All Blacks after Tom Donnelly was replaced. Victor Vito came on at blindside flanker, while Kaino moved into lock.

In 2011 Kaino played an important role in the All Blacks winning the Rugby World Cup. He was named in the starting XV for every game. He played every minute of every game except for the final few seconds in the semi-final against Australia.[7] He scored four tries in the World Cup.

Career notes

References

  1. 1 2 Perrott, Alan (11 August 2011). "Jerome Kaino: The enforcer". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  2. ↑ Gray, Wynne (11 July 2005). "Cartoons on hold for Afoa". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  3. ↑ Shannon, Kris (24 March 2012). "Kaino gone – for now". New Zealand Herald.
  4. ↑ "Kaino returns to Blues". New Zealand Herald. 4 October 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  5. ↑ McKendry, Patrick (21 January 2014). "Kaino – I want to be a starting All Black again". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  6. ↑ "Kaino handed chance by All Blacks". BBC News. 13 June 2006.
  7. ↑ Rugby News Service (24 October 2011). "Top five players of RWC 2011" (Press release). International Rugby Board. Retrieved 25 April 2012.

External links

Awards
Preceded by
New Zealand Ben Atiga		 IRB International U21 Player of the Year
2004 		Succeeded by
Australia Tatafu Polota-Nau
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