Rugby United New York have announced the signing of Fa’asiu Fuatai for the 2021 Major League Rugby season. The hot-stepping winger arrives from Bay of Plenty in New Zealand’s Mitre 10 Cup where he has been a starter for the past two seasons.
Fuatai will celebrate his 27th birthday on August 1. He came to prominence as a teenager after scoring two tries in three games for New Zealand at the 2013 Junior World Championship. Legendary All Black Sevens coach Gordon Tietjens then invited him to train with the side the following year.
After biding his time while playing with Otago, Fuatai finally made his World Sevens Series bow in 2017. He caught the eye of Bordeaux Bègles at the Paris tournament and joined the Top 14 club the following season, starting 16 games before returning to New Zealand in 2018.
While Fuatai does not have any Super Rugby caps, he has been in the extended squads of both the Highlanders and Crusaders. The Auckland native lined up for the latter opposite the Hurricanes in preseason action earlier this year.