Students, children, grown men and women have been flocking to rub shoulders with some of Samoa’s new-found sporting idols.
This has been the case for the past couple of days since a Toa Samoa rugby league delegation arrived on the big island as part of a thank you tour.
The trip followed the Four Nations tournament where Samoa played a starring role, earning the respect of the world by pushing England and New Zealand close during their matches.
<script async src="http://www.samoaobserver.ws///pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
<!-- ads-articles(24.03.14) -->
<ins class="adsbygoogle"
style="display:inline-block;width:336px;height:280px"
data-ad-client="ca-pub-9419815128221199"
data-ad-slot="2395638412"></ins>
<script>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
</script>
Back in Samoa, the performance of the team has certainly boosted local interest in rugby league, which is usually dwarfed by the interest in rugby union. This is not lost on the administrators of the sport here. It is also why they have decided to return to Samoa to acknowledge the tapuaiga from the country.
For the people of Savai’i, seeing the Toa Samoa stars return to thank them for their support has been priceless.
Leading the delegation are senior players Frank Pritchard, Reni Maitua, the unstoppable BJ Leilua among others.
Some of the players are joined by their partners and girlfriends as they make their way around the island, enjoying the scenery and the beauty of Savai’i.
The Toa Samoa’s effort during the Four Nations was acknowledged by Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, during a meeting with the team last Friday.
{googleAds}<script async src="http://www.samoaobserver.ws///pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
<ins class="adsbygoogle"
style="display:inline-block;width:336px;height:280px"
data-ad-client="ca-pub-2469982834957525"
data-ad-slot="1033882026"></ins>
<script>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
</script>{/googleAds}