‘Ikale Tahi star fullback Atieli Pakalani has been signed by top English rugby club, Leicester Tigers. He joins three other Tongan internationals signed by the club; Telusa Veainu, Sione Kalamafoni and Valentino Mapapalangi.

The 25-year-old Tonga College alumni is an ex-captain of the Tonga Under-20s rugby team and formerly played for the NSW Waratahs in the Super Rugby tournament. He debuted for Tonga this year in the Pacific Nations Cup where he played against Samoa and Fiji. Pakalani was a standout player and captured attention for scoring a brilliant solo try against Manu Samoa.

Pakalani expressed his excitement in a media release from the Leicester Tigers. He stated “I was very excited that Leicester were interested in me and now I’m excited to be here, at one of the big clubs in Europe. I’ve experience a few different countries and environments to get here but it’s a great set-up with the players, staff and coaches.”

He added “There are some very experienced players in the squad. I’m just settling in and I think I can learn a lot from guys here like Matt Toomua, Manu and Telusa.”

Tigers head coach Matt O’Connor stated “Afa is a good player in the back three, he has played his first Test rugby this year and he is a good age profile for us. We’ve been looking for a bit of depth in our backline options and we look forward to working with him.”