Mase Mahonri Schwalger (born 15 September 1978) is a former Samoan professional
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 ...
footballer who last played in New Zealand for the
Chiefs in the
Super Rugby
Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Super Rugby started as the S ...
competition and for
Counties Manukau 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 ...
. He captained the
Samoan national team at the
2011 Rugby World Cup
The 2011 Rugby World Cup, was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The World Rugby, International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japa ...
.
Club career
Born in Samoa, Schwalger moved to New Zealand in his youth and attended
Waitakere College in Auckland. He made his provincial debut in 1999 for
Hawke's Bay
Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...
against
Waikato
The Waikato () is a region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipā District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the nort ...
, and went on to play 44 matches for the province.
Schwalger moved to
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
for the 2004 provincial season, and his solid showing for the Lions saw him drafted to the
Highlanders for the
2005 Super 12 season
The 2005 Super 12 season was the tenth season of the Super 12, contested by teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The season ran from February to May 2005, with each team playing all the others once. At the end of the regular seaso ...
. He made 5 appearances for the Highlanders, serving as backup at hooker to
All Black
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...
Anton Oliver
Anton David Oliver (born 9 September 1975) is a retired New Zealand rugby union player. Previously, he played as a hooker for Marlborough (one of the predecessors to today's Tasman side) and Otago in the National Provincial Championship and A ...
.
After two more seasons with Wellington, Schwalger was selected to the
Hurricanes
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...
for the
2007 Super 14 season
The 2007 Super 14 season started in February 2007 with preseason matches held from mid-January. It finished on 19 May with the final at Kings Park Stadium in Durban, in the first final between two South African teams in the history of Super Rug ...
. For the Hurricanes, he made 9 appearances including one start.
In 2007, Schwalger moved to Europe, signing with the
Llanelli Scarlets in the
Celtic League
The Celtic League is a pan-Celtic organization, founded in 1961, that aims to promote modern Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man – referred to as the Celtic nations; it places pa ...
. After two seasons with the Scarlets, he signed with the
Sale Sharks
Sale Sharks are a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England, United Kingdom. Its team play in Premiership Rugby, and have been in England's top division of rugby union continuously since 1995. Originally founded in 1861 as ...
in the
Guinness Premiership
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition, consisting of 10 clubs, and is the top division of the English rugby u ...
. Schwalgar left Sale at the start of the 2010–11 season to return to New Zealand, and signed with
Taranaki
Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont.
The main centre is the ...
for the remainder of the
2010 ITM Cup
The 2010 ITM Cup season was the fifth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on July 29, when Taranaki hosted Northland. It involved the top fourteen rugby union ...
.
After a solid performance with Taranaki, Schwalger earned a
Super Rugby
Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Super Rugby started as the S ...
contract with the
Highlanders, where he previously played in 2005. He made 12 appearances including 5 starts over the course of the
2011 season.
After the Highlanders signing of
Andrew Hore
Andrew Keith Hore (born 13 September 1978) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He played for the All Blacks between 2002 and 2013. His position was hooker. He notably played for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, but also represented the ...
, Schwalger was surplus to requirements and signed with the
Chiefs for the 2012 season.
In July 2012, Schwalger signed with
Counties Manukau for the
2012 ITM Cup
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
domestic competition in New Zealand for two seasons.
After three successful seasons with the
Chiefs, including
Super Rugby
Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Super Rugby started as the S ...
titles in
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
and
2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
, Schwalger retired from competitive rugby in 2014.
International career
Schwalger made his debut for the
Samoan national team in 2000 against
Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
and developed into a fixture for the side, representing them at the
2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
and
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup () was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by F ...
s. Noted for his leadership skills, he served as team captain at the
2011 Rugby World Cup
The 2011 Rugby World Cup, was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The World Rugby, International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japa ...
. However, he was controversially dropped from the team in 2012 after criticizing team management.
He was also selected for the
Pacific Islanders team to tour Europe at the end of 2006.
Prosecution
In September 2024 Mase was arrested and charged with multiple serious offences against members of his family, including indecent assault, unlawful sexual connection, and sexual conduct with a person under 16. He resigned as coach of the
Samoa national rugby union team
The Samoa national rugby union team represents Samoa in men's international rugby union competitions. They are governed by Samoa Rugby Union and also known as "Manu Samoa", which is thought to derive from the name of a Samoan warrior. They perf ...
on 6 January 2025.
References
External links
Chiefs profileProfileat wellingtonlions.co.nz
Profileat rwc2003.irb.com
Highlanders Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwalger, Mahonri
1978 births
Living people
Rugby union hookers
Samoan rugby union players
New Zealand rugby union players
New Zealand rugby union coaches
Chiefs (Super Rugby) players
Highlanders (rugby union) players
Hurricanes (rugby union) players
Scarlets players
Rugby union players from Apia
Samoa international rugby union players
Pacific Islanders rugby union players
Taranaki rugby union players
Wellington rugby union players
Hawke's Bay rugby union players
Counties Manukau rugby union players
Samoan emigrants to New Zealand
Samoan expatriate rugby union players in England
Samoan expatriate rugby union players in Wales
Samoan people of German descent
New Zealand people of German descent
People educated at Waitākere College
2003 Rugby World Cup players
2007 Rugby World Cup players
2011 Rugby World Cup players
Sale Sharks players