With ten caps for the All Blacks, Worcester Warriors centre Sam Tuitupou is going to be a key man in their fight for survival. He answered a few questions…
Q. You arrived in this country with the nickname Pocket Rocket, any other nicknames?
A. I've had The Tongan Torpedo but that's about it.
Q. Fact about Rico Gear most people wouldn't know?
A. That his nickname is Sneaks, as he is so sneaky!
Q. How did you get into rugby in the first place?
A. I played league first up. The area I was brought up in back home was more of a league area, and it wasn't until I went to Kelston Boys in my senior years that I started getting into rugby.
Q. Were you just interested in sport or were you any good at other subjects?
A. I was quite good at a few things. I enjoyed metalwork and woodwork classes and science, too.
Q. Were you always destined to play professional rugby?
A. No I wasn't. I always wanted to be a handy man and be involved with building.
Q. Do you keep your hand in?
A. I've been doing some building work with some of the locals, into their workshops and stuff. It helps me to get away from it all.
Q. What was the last thing that you made?
A. I've got a project going at the moment where I am building a Pig Spit. I've welded it together, and I am just waiting for a motor to turn up and it'll be all ready to go for our week off.
Q. Favourite delicacy over here?
A. Back home it was McDonalds but I'm not near one here. But my mum's over at the moment so I'm enjoying her cooking. And no, she's not been introduced to Worcester Sauce yet!
Q. Taken your family sight-seeing?
A. I'm off to Paris for the first time with my wife and four kids.
Q. Favourite Mike Ruddock saying?
A. He always starts off a meeting with 'Okay guys' and he uses ‘Happy Days’ a lot, which I enjoy hearing.
Q. Is there a player that you've never come across before that has really impressed you so far?
A. Probably James Brown. He is on the bench for us at the moment because Loki Crichton is playing 10, but I enjoy playing outside him when he does play.
Q. Best banter in the dressing room?
A. Aisea Havili – he’s a hard case and makes everyone crack up when he talks. His English is pretty broken.
Q. Last unusual thing you did?
A. Mike Ruddock was doing some bench pressing among the boys and I chucked a water bottle and it hit him in the nuts. Mike jumped up and Uche [Odouza] was nearest to him, so he thought it was him despite his pleas of innocence.
Q. Have Warriors fans seen the best of you yet?
A. The weather hasn't been too awesome, so most of the play has been through the forwards. But I am sure there is plenty more to come from me. Hopefully we can now get some momentum going and play some good rugby.
Interview by Jon Newcombe