11 Nov 2014

League bigger than Union in Samoa

11:15 am on 11 November 2014

Samoa rugby league captain David Fa'alogo claims rugby league is already as big as rugby union in the islands and will soon overtake the more traditional code.

The Newcastle star made the comments to Rugby League Week after Samoa was bundled out of the Four Nations tournament after a 44-18 loss to Australia.

Toa Samoa Rugby League Team

Toa Samoa Rugby League Team Photo: Toa Samoa / Facebook

However many are still calling the Samoan campaign a success because of the manner with which they nearly upset New Zealand and England.

The Samoans also helped attract the biggest crowd for any sporting event in Wollongong this year with over 18,000 gathering to watch their clash with the Kangaroos.

Faa'logo says it's only the start for Samoan rugby league and their first appearance in the Four Nations is a good stepping stone.

The prop says he thinks league can overcome union in popularity as it is probably on par with rugby union at the moment in Samoa and it's only going to grow.

While the league team seems to have captured the imagination of the public in Samoa, the nation's rugby union side opened their northern tour over the weekend with a 24-13 loss to Italy.