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Samoa are reportedly on the brink of being suspended by rugby’s main governing body
Samoa are reportedly on the brink of being suspended by World Rugby.
The Samoan Government announced on Wednesday that it is withdrawing support of Lakapi Samoa – Samoa’s rugby governing body – because of “unresolved internal issues and division” at the union. That has, according to local reports, led to a new deadline later this week.
The Samoa Observer report that World Rugby has given the Samoan Government until Friday “to accept a proposed review of its decision to withdraw recognition and financial support from Lakapi Samoa”.
And that could lead to a lengthy ban for Samoa.
“Failure to accept the review or respond by the deadline could result in Samoa being suspended from international rugby for four years,” reported the Samoa Observer.
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That development reportedly followed a meeting between Samoa’s governing body and World Rugby representatives this week.
Samoa’s standing in world rugby has rapidly diminished in recent years.
The Pacific Islanders had always been a tough team to beat, being ranked as high as seventh in the world in 2012 following a win over Wales in Cardiff.
However, they fell to an all-time low of 20th this year – having barely scraped into next year’s expanded World Cup in Australia following a 13-13 draw with Belgium last November.
Were Samoa to be banned, Belgium could theoretically be handed a reprieve and reach their first World Cup.
Back in March, Samoa’s Prime Minister Laʻauli Leuatea Schmidt said that his Government would set up a rival union to govern the sport in the country if the entire Lakapi Samoa board did not resign.
Prior to that, he had expressed dissatisfaction about the state of the game in Samoa, saying the sport had been “politicised”.
“We’re coming in to clear out all the politicians inside our rugby union,” he said in February.
“At this stage, our rugby is very impoverished … we are in the level that Samoa had never been before, because of what? Because of management.”
In June, World Rugby formally appointed Lakapi Samoa chairman Afioga Namulauuli Papali’i as Samoa’s representative on the World Rugby Council.
“The appointment reflects World Rugby’s recognition of Lakapi Samoa’s constitutional processes and reinforces Samoa’s continued place at the highest level of international rugby governance.”
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