{"id":428409,"date":"2026-05-15T04:30:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T04:30:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/428409\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T04:30:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T04:30:08","slug":"kanaloa-rugby-set-ambitious-goals-as-discussions-for-moana-pasifika-takeover-progress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/428409\/","title":{"rendered":"Kanaloa Rugby set ambitious goals as discussions for Moana Pasifika takeover progress"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Zealand Rugby chief executive David Kirk<\/a> said following last week\u2019s NZR AGM in Wellington that there was interest from potential investors in Moana Pasifika, although he did not identify those parties.<\/p>\n

Kanaloa believes it has the resources and long-term vision required for both Moana Pasifika and Pacific rugby to thrive if the takeover bid is approved.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn five years\u2019 time, I want to see Moana Pasifika lifting the Super Rugby championship trophy,\u201d Tuitupou told the Herald.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s how dedicated we are and how passionate we are. We believe that, with the Pacific players who could be available, that\u2019s something we can achieve.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully in five years\u2019 time Moana Pasifika will be Super Rugby champions, while Samoa and Tonga are also in a position where they can challenge New Zealand and Australia in test matches.\u201d<\/p>\n

Atiga also believes that target is achievable, saying the consortium sees Moana as a franchise capable of becoming \u201cself-sustaining\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cA franchise that no longer depends on outside funding, with strong player pathways, deeper grassroots connections back to the islands and a global brand that other Pacific franchises can model themselves on,\u201d Atiga said.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor us, it\u2019s about trying to look after the next generation.\u201d It is an ambitious target if ownership is to change hands, given the amount of work required to prepare the team for next season.”<\/p>\n

\"SamSam Tuitupou, John Afoa and Ben Atiga. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

With their futures uncertain, a number of players are exploring other options. The club will also require a new head coach, with Tana Umaga joining the All Blacks<\/a> as an assistant, while questions remain around Ardie Savea\u2019s future<\/a> despite him being contracted through to 2027.<\/p>\n

While those issues can be addressed in due course, Tuitupou stressed the importance of maintaining a team with genuine Pacific representation.<\/p>\n

The consortium said establishing a regular presence in the islands was among its highest priorities, along with taking matches there. Moana Pasifika have played only once in Samoa<\/a> and Tonga<\/a>, while their past two attempts to host matches in the islands were relocated<\/a> because of costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2019ve seen is that kids who have reached out to me at 18 don\u2019t really want to travel halfway across the world looking for an opportunity,\u201d Tuitupou said. \u201cThey\u2019d rather have that opportunity on their doorstep.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the big thing for us – creating opportunities for young players in the islands and in New Zealand, so they don\u2019t have to leave their families.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I\u2019d had that opportunity, I would have stayed in New Zealand as well, but unfortunately I had to leave. For us, it\u2019s about making sure there is a pathway for young Pacific Island kids and ensuring going abroad becomes the last option, not the first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Atiga pointed to Moana Pasifika\u2019s success during the 2025 season, saying a thriving Pacific side could provide a much-needed spark for Super Rugby.<\/p>\n

\"ArdieArdie Savea celebrates during Moana Pasifika’s win. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

\u201cA successful Pacific Island team brings a unique culture and a different kind of energy to the game and the community,\u201d Atiga said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey bring a new audience and more fans. As Pacific Islanders, we\u2019re good storytellers and we tell a good story. All of that helps create a very strong product.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, the consortium can only wait and hope a deal is completed so planning can begin for the 2027 season. Kanaloa Rugby co-founder Matt Atiga said that, should a takeover proceed, the intention would be to maintain stability rather than overhaul the organisation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a tight deadline and, in some respects, it almost feels impossible to pull this off,\u201d Atiga said. \u201cWe need to maintain stability, even with the uncertainty around everything at the moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not saying it\u2019s going to be easy, but this is 150% what we want to do \u2013 take this team back to the islands to play and perform in front of our own people, create our own economy within the Pacific and showcase that we can do it.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can already see examples of that with the Fijian Drua and that\u2019s been well documented. Our model will be similar, but it will also have its own intricacies that we believe can make it even better. We just need the opportunity to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rugby unions based in the islands have also endorsed Kanaloa\u2019s bid. <\/p>\n

As things stand, Moana Pasifika have just two games remaining in their Super Rugby season. They have the bye this week.<\/p>\n

Ben Francis<\/a> is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New Zealand Rugby chief executive David Kirk said following last week\u2019s NZR AGM in Wellington that there was…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":428410,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[33147,5831,4523,806,29385,8136,18239,44301,55525,67447,15144,2082,2740,13687,45432,296,212747,809,41654,111,139,69,31445,13194,6327,219591,1551,13109,213,666,313,26592,34367],"class_list":["post-428409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-aiming","tag-alive","tag-ambitious","tag-as","tag-believes","tag-blacks","tag-championship","tag-consortium","tag-contender","tag-discussions","tag-featuring","tag-for","tag-former","tag-franchise","tag-goals","tag-into","tag-kanaloa","tag-keep","tag-moana","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-pasifika","tag-progress","tag-rugby","tag-selfsustaining","tag-set","tag-several","tag-sports","tag-struggling","tag-super","tag-takeover","tag-transform"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=428409"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428409\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/428410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=428409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=428409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=428409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}