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Nadolo to join Leicester ahead of 2020/21 season

Nemani Nadolo

Leicester Tigers have announced that Nemani Nadolo will join the club ahead of the 2020/21 season.

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The Fiji international will swap Top14 side Montepellier for Welford Road this summer, as reported by RugbyPass last Friday.

The 6’4, 137kg Nadolo is believed to have signed a two-year deal with Geordan Murphy’s side, where he will look to help improve the Leicester Tigers’ fortunes after two frustration seasons in the Premiership.

Nadolo has spent the last four years at Montpellier, where he has registered a stunning return of 53 tries in just 68 games.

The outside-back has also notched up 222 points in 29 Test appearances for Fiji since his international debut in 2010.

The versatile Nadolo can play at winger or in the midfield, and his signature represents a major coup for Leicester.

“I’ve heard a lot of good things about the club,” Nadolo said.

“Tigers is everything I’m looking for in a club … family first and the vision they have moving forward is something I wanted to be a part of.

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“I can’t wait to roll my sleeves up and rip in. It’s a great opportunity for me and my family to come set up shop in your town. Hopefully I earn the respect of the fans by doing my talking on the field.”

Tigers head coach Geordan Murphy said the addition of Nadolo was one that players, coaches and supporters could all “get excited” for.

“It’s certainly one to get excited about, no matter who you are,” said Murphy.

“He’s a star of the international game and a player that crowds all over the world have been able to enjoy see play.

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“Now, the Tigers faithful get that chance and the playing squad, as well as coaching staff, get the opportunity to work alongside and with Nemani from next season.”

Nadolo will be the latest in a long of Fijians to represent the club, following in the footsteps of fellow countrymen Seru Rabeni, Vereniki Goneva, Seremaia Bai and more recently Campese Ma’afu, as well as World Rugby Hall of Famer Waisale Serevi.

Murphy, who played with all but Ma’afu for Tigers, is confident that Nadolo can leave a legacy like his fellow Fijians at Welford Road.

“We have been blessed with some incredible Fijians at Tigers and I was fortunate enough to have featured alongside some of the very, very best as a player,” added Murphy.

“Nemani certainly possesses the traits of a player that Tigers fans look for and if we didn’t believe he could come here and do for us what we know he’s capable of, we wouldn’t have signed him.

“I don’t think it will be long before we are hearing ‘Nadolo’ chanted from the Terrace at Welford Road.”

The 32-year-old’s signing comes on the back of recent announcement of new arrivals Zack Henry and Shalva Mamukashvili, as well as recommitments from international duo George Ford and Ellis Genge, as well as youngsters Tom Hardwick, George Worth and Sam Aspland-Robinson.

Prior to his move to Montpellier, Nadolo had stints with the Crusaders in New Zealand, Green Rockets in Japan, Exeter Chiefs, Bourgoin and the NSW Waratahs in Australia.

In a career spanning across two decades, Nadolo has registered more than 1,000 points in domestic and international rugby, including more than 150 professional tries.

Watch: Six Nations £300m paywall deal: ‘We would not rule anything out’.

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Bull Shark 4 hours ago
Rassie Erasmus' Boks selection policy is becoming bizarre

To be fair, the only thing that drives engagement on this site is over the top critiques of Southern Hemisphere teams.


Or articles about people on podcasts criticizing southern hemisphere teams.


Articles regarding the Northern Hemisphere tend to be more positive than critical. I guess to also rile up kiwis and Saffers who seem to be the majority of followers in the comments section. There seems to be a whole department dedicated to Ireland’s world ranking news.


Despite being dialled into the Northern edition - I know sweet fokall about what’s going on in France.


And even less than fokall about what’s cutting in Japan - which has a fast growing, increasingly premium League competition emerging.


And let’s not talk about the pacific. Do they even play rugby Down there.


Oh and the Americas. I’ve read more articles about a young, stargazing Welshman’s foray into NFL than I have anything related to either the north and south continents of the Americas.


I will give credit that the women’s game is getting decent airtime. But for the rest and the above; it’s just pathetic coming from a World Rugby website.


Just consider the innovation emerging in Japan with the pedigree of coaches over there.


There’s so much good we could be reading.


Instead it’s unimaginative “critical for the sake of feigning controversial”. Which is lazy, because in order to pull that off all you need to be really good at is:


1. Being a doos;

2. Having an opinion.


No prior experience needed.


Which is not journalism. That’s like all or most of us in the comments section. People like Finn (who I believe is a RP contributor).


Anyway. Hopefully it will get better. The game is growing and the interest in the game is growing. Maybe it will attract more qualified journalists over time.

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