Gloucester hooker Matu’u makes shock switch to Championship

Samoan international hooker Motu Matu’u has joined London Irish from Gloucester Rugby in the build-up to the 2018/19 season.
Matu’u, the Exiles’ sixth summer signing, makes the switch to Hazelwood having made 46 appearances for the Cherry & Whites including an outing in this year’s European Rugby Challenge Cup final against Cardiff Blues in Bilbao.
Continue reading below...
Bringing 12 Samoa caps to the table, the explosive front-rower burst onto the scene in 2011 with Super Rugby side the Hurricanes where he played 45 times between 2011 and 2016. Competing with experienced All Black Dane Coles for a starting berth, Matu’u crossed the whitewash on three occasions for the New Zealand-based franchise, earning himself a seat on the plane to the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Standing at 6ft 1” and tipping the scales at 17 stone, the 31-year-old is delighted to make the move to Irish as they target an immediate return to the Gallagher Premiership.
“I’m really excited at the prospect of playing for London Irish,” said Matu’u, who today flew out to Fiji to join up with the rest of the Samoan squad ahead of this summer’s Pacific Nations Cup.
“The Championship is a very physical competition and I’m looking forward to the challenge of helping London Irish win the Championship and ensure an immediate return to the Premiership.”
Exiles director of rugby Declan Kidney said: “Motu is a player who brings a wealth of experience to the club having played internationally for Samoa as well as spending five seasons in Super Rugby with the Hurricanes.
“I’m very pleased that he’s decided to move to London Irish and we look forward to welcoming him to the club this summer.”
Latest Comments
Yeah, I don’t really get it either.
The teams will need to be more competitive at some stage as I’m sure it won’t be cost effective before long. It’s a lot of money and resources they have to pump into it just to field teams, let alone compete.
Even with the Boks only focus being on RWC’s, the euro comps would be a great way to develop test players in the first 1-3 years of a RWC cycle.
Go to commentsIt's a fact: Reddit has always been, is, and will be my source for crypto discussions, security tips, and market trends. Little did I know it would be the same site that helped save me from financial ruin. Some months ago, an AMA thread about Trust Geeks Hack Expert showed up. People asked them anything: from lost wallet recoveries to phishing scams; their answers sounded really detailed, transparent, and full of insight. At the time, I didn't know that their help was near. It all started with what I thought was a routine software update. I had received an e-mail from what looked like a trusted exchange, telling me to install an important patch. The email looked *legit—*matching the branding, formatting, and even the usual tone of messages I had received before. Without a second thought, I downloaded the update and installed it. Biggest mistake of my life. It froze within minutes, and then it automatically restarted. My crypto wallet was empty when I regained access. $200,000-gone. At first, I thought it was some kind of glitch, but as I dug deeper, the cold reality hit me hard: I had been hacked. The "update" was a form of malware designed to drain wallets by injecting malicious code. Panic set in, but rather than spiral, I remembered the Trust Geeks Hack Expert AMA. Their confidence in handling cases like mine had stood out to me. I rushed back to the thread, found their contact details Website https://trustgeekshackexpert.com/-- Email: trustgeekshackexpert{@}fastservice{.}com, and reached out immediately. Their response was prompt and very reassuring. They asked for every little detail I could remember-from the time of the installation of the fake update to the exact nature of the transactions I had done prior to this. They got to work, tracing the movement of my stolen funds using some advanced blockchain forensics.
Days went by, and I had my doubts, but they kept me updated. Then came a message that I was praying for; they had recovered my $200,000. It sounded like a dream come true. All stress, regret, and anger vanished at that moment. Trust Geeks Hack Expert saved not only my funds but also taught me a lesson which will never be forgotten: never trust email links. Now, I double-check every update; use cold storage for large amounts; don't click on anything that's remotely suspicious. If not for that Reddit AMA, I would have never found the only team skilled enough to turn my disaster into a comeback story.
Go to comments