Name Kade Poki Career start 2007 Role Rugby Player | Height 1.76 m Siblings Hayden Pederson Weight 85 kg | |
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Kade poki highlights
Kade Poki (born 17 January 1988 in Blenheim, New Zealand) is a rugby union player who plays for the Bayonne in the French Top 14 competition. Prior to his move abroad, he had represented Tasman in the ITM Cup and the Highlanders in the Super Rugby competition.
Contents
- Kade poki highlights
- Www no8 co nz b a bill i v kade poki and lima sopoaga
- Provincial Rugby
- Super Rugby
- Japan
- France
- International Rugby
- References
Www no8 co nz b a bill i v kade poki and lima sopoaga
Provincial Rugby
Poki made his Air New Zealand Cup debut for the Tasman Makos in 2007 against Taranaki, but injury ruled him out of most of the season. He emerged as a starter in 2008, and spent three seasons as a starter on the wing for the Makos and one of the side's more dangerous players.
For the 2011 ITM Cup, Poki signed with the Southland Stags, where he lined up alongside a number of his teammates with the Highlanders. However, he never really hit his stride with in two seasons with Southland, playing just 13 games without scoring a try.
Poki briefly returned to Tasman for the 2015 ITM Cup in between stints in Japan and France, appearing in 6 matches for the Makos.
Super Rugby
Poki made his Super Rugby debut for the Crusaders in 2008 when he played against ACT Brumbies. Aged only 20, he made 10 starts for the team over the course of the season and scored two tries, helping the team to the championship. However, injuries and squad depth limited his chances to build on his freshman season, and he made only 4 more appearances for the Crusaders over the next two seasons.
Poki was left off the Crusaders squad for the 2011 Super Rugby season, and initially not selected by any of the other New Zealand teams. However, an injury to Kurt Baker saw him added to the Highlanders squad on the eve of the season.
Despite initially being an afterthought addition, Poki made the most of his opportunity and claimed a starting spot on the wing for the Highlanders, and emerged as one of the breakout players of the competition. Highlights of his season include a two-try performance in a win over the defending champion Bulls and a sublime individual effort against the Rebels in which he shrugged off 11 tackles to score. With higher expectations for the 2012 season, Poki was hobbled by a knee injury and missed much of the season, and was limited to a single try. However, he would rebound in the 2013 season scoring 5 tries from just 8 appearances.
Japan
Following the 2013 Super Rugby season, Poki left New Zealand to sign in Japan for the Kubota Spears of the Top League.
France
In 2015, Poki signed in France with Bayonne of Pro D2 in France. In his first season, he scored 4 tries from 12 matches to help earn promotion to the Top 14. He scored an additional two tries in 2016-17 as Bayonne were relegated back to Pro D2.
International Rugby
Kade Poki was a star in the 2007 Under-19 World Cup for New Zealand, and again for the New Zealand Under-20 squad in 2008.