Samuel Puni Kaleta, known as Sam Kaleta (born 9 March 1966 in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

) is a former New-Zealand born Samoan rugby union player who played also for Japan. He played as a flanker.

Career

Kaleta graduated from

Lynfield College Lynfield College is a secondary education provider in Lynfield, Auckland, New Zealand. It celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2008. The Principal of Lynfield College is Ms Cath Knell. The school practices NCEA for assessments and examinations, ...

in Auckland. During his playing career, he played for the New Zealand clubs

Kia Toa RFC Kia Toa RFC is a constituent club in the Manawatu Rugby Union, Manawatu province for rugby in New Zealand. It is at the Palmerston North Bowling Club on Linton Street and is one of the oldest clubs in the Manawatu. Kia Toa is a Māori languag ...

and

Ponsonby RFC Ponsonby District Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Auckland, New Zealand. The club was established in 1874 and is affiliated with the Auckland Rugby Football Union. Ponsonby is the oldest extant member of the Auckland union, ...

, as well as for the Japanese clubs Ricoh Black Rams and

Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars also known as Mitsubishi Juko Sagamihara Rugby Club, are a Japanese rugby union team based in Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The owner of this club is Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The club was founded in 1981. It ...

. In 1991 he played for the NZ Combined Services team of the

New Zealand Defence Force The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; , "Line of Defence of New Zealand") is the three-branched military of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the national security of New Zealand and its realm, promoting its interests, ...

and

Police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

as lock. He finished his career in 2004 for Perthshire RFC. His first cap for

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

was against

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

, in Seoul, on 26 September 1992, playing four matches. In 1994, Kaleta decided to play for

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

, his country of heritage; his first cap for the Manu Samoa was in the match 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 ...

, at Moamoa, on 4 June 1994. He also was part of the

1995 Rugby World Cup The 1995 Rugby World Cup (), was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country. The World Cup was the first major sporting event to take place in ...

roster, although he did not play a match during the tournament. His last cap in his career was against

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

, in Apia, on 5 July 1997. In 2006, Kaleta joined the staff of Perthshire RFC and took responsibility for the club's academy. For some time he was the team's player-coach, even entering the field in 2008.

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