Mahonri Ngakuru (born 2 January 2000) is a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player, who currently plays for

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

in the French

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the National Rugby League (France), France National Rugby League, also ...

. He previously played for in

Major League Rugby Major League Rugby (MLR) is a professional rugby union competition in the United States. The league comprises 11 teams. While operating outside of the governance and oversight of the national governing body, the league is officially sanctioned ...

and plays for in the

National Provincial Championship The National Provincial Championship may refer to: * National Provincial Championship (1976–2005), original competition before reform into 14 sides * National Provincial Championship (2006–present) The National Provincial Championship (NP ...

. His preferred position is

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

Early career

Ngakuru attended

Saint Kentigern College Saint Kentigern College is a private co-educational Presbyterian secondary school in Auckland, New Zealand. The school is operated by the Saint Kentigern Trust Board. Established in 1953, the college is semi co-educational, with a single-gender ...

, where his performances earned him selection for NZ Schools. He was a member of the Crusaders development team and named in a New Zealand U20 development camp. He is of Maori and Tongan heritage.

Professional career

Ngakuru made his professional debut for in the

2020 Mitre 10 Cup The 2020 Mitre 10 Cup season was the 15th season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on September 11, when North Harbour (National Provincial Championship), North Har ...

. He represented the team again in 2021 and 2022 before transferring to in 2023 being named in both the 2023 and 2024 squads. Ngakuru was named in the

Moana Pasifika Moana Pasifika is a professional rugby union team based in New Zealand and made up of players from various Pacific Island nations as well as New Zealand or Australian born players of Pasifika heritage, including Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and the Cook I ...

squad ahead of the

2022 Super Rugby Pacific season The 2022 Super Rugby Pacific season (known as Harvey Norman Super Rugby Pacific in Australia and DHL Super Rugby Pacific in New Zealand) is the 27th season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams f ...

, and was again named in the side for the 2023 season, making ten total appearances across the two seasons. He departed the side at the end of the 2023 season ahead of joining the

Seattle Seawolves The Seattle Seawolves are an American professional rugby union team based in the Seattle metropolitan area that competes in Major League Rugby (MLR). The team was founded in 2017. The Seawolves won two MLR championships in 2018 and 2019, and los ...

for the

2024 Major League Rugby season The 2024 Major League Rugby season was the seventh season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season began on March 2, 2024, and lasted through June 29, 2024, followed by the Champ ...

References

External links

itsrugby.co.uk Profile
Living people 2000 births New Zealand rugby union players Rugby union locks Moana Pasifika players 21st-century New Zealand sportsmen Tasman rugby union players North Harbour rugby union players Seattle Seawolves players Expatriate rugby union players in the United States New Zealand expatriate rugby union players People educated at Saint Kentigern College {{NZ-rugbyunion-bio-stub