Leeson Ah Mau

Leeson Ah Mau

Ah Mau playing for St. George Illawarra in 2013
Personal information
Born	(1989-12-20) 20 December 1989 Auckland, New Zealand
Height	185 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	110 kg (17 st 5 lb; 240 lb)
Playing information
Position	Second-row, Prop
Club
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
2009	NZ Warriors	2	0	0	0	0
2010–11	North Queensland	33	2	0	0	8
2012–	St. George Illawarra	95	2	0	0	8
	Total	130	4	0	0	16
Representative
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
2013–16	Samoa	11	0	0	0	0
Source: Rugby League Project

Leeson Ah Mau (born 20 December 1989) is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer for the St George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League (NRL). A Samoa national representative forward, he previously played in for other NRL teams the North Queensland Cowboys and the New Zealand Warriors, and is the brother of Isaak Ah Mau.

Early years

Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Ah Mau is of Samoan and Chinese descent.^[1] He attended De La Salle College, Mangere East and started his rugby league career with the Papatoetoe Panthers, later moving to Otahuhu and playing in Auckland Rugby League competitions. As a member of Otahuhu, Ah Mau played for the Tamaki Titans in the Bartercard Cup. Ah Mau played for the Junior Kiwis in 2006 and the New Zealand under-18 side in 2007. Ah Mau was signed to a developmental contract with the Warriors in 2007. During his first year with the club he played 18 games in the NSWRL Premier League for the Auckland Lions. In 2008 he played in the inaugural season of the Toyota Cup, making 22 appearances for the Junior Warriors.^[2] He finished his Toyota Cup career with 40 appearances, 9 tries and 1 goal.^[3]

Playing career

2009

In Round 1 of the 2009 NRL season, Ah Mau made his first grade debut for the New Zealand Warriors against the Parramatta Eels off the interchange bench in the Warriors 26-18 win.^[2][4] However, after suffering a hamstring injury, Ah Mau did not play first grade again in 2009. His contract was not renewed for the 2010 season, and he signed with the North Queensland Cowboys.^[5][6] Ah Mau finished his debut year in the NRL with him playing in 2 matches for the New Zealand Warriors in the 2009 NRL season.

2010

Ah Mau made his first grade debut for the North Queensland Cowboys in Round 4 against the Gold Coast Titans playing off the interchange bench in the Cowboys 32-18 win at 1300SMILES Stadium.^[7] Ah Mau scored his first NRL career try in Round 22 QLD derby match against the Brisbane Broncos in the Cowboys 34-26 loss at 1300SMILES Stadium.^[8] Ah Mau went on to be named the Cowboys' rookie of the year for the 2010 season, having made 18 first-grade appearances and scoring a try.

2011

On 8 August 2011 Ah Mau signed with the St George Illawarra Dragons on a 2-year deal starting from 2012.^[9] Ah Mau finished the Cowboys 2011 NRL season with him playing in 15 matches and scoring a try.

2012

In Round 1 of the 2012 NRL season in the season opener against the Newcastle Knights at Hunter Stadium, Ah Mau made his club debut for the St George Illawarra Dragons off the interchange bench in the Dragons golden point extra time 15-14 win.^[10] Ah Mau spent most the year playing for the Illawarra Cutters in the NSW Cup. Ah Mau finished the Dragons 2012 NRL season with him playing in 11 matches.

2013

On 20 April 2013, Ah Mau made his international début, playing for Samoa in the Pacific Rugby League International against pacific rivals Tonga. Ah Mau played off the interchange bench in Samoa's 36-4 loss at Penrith Stadium.^[11] In Round 24 against the Wests Tigers at SCG, Ah Mau scored his first club try for the Dragons in the Dragons 34-16 loss. Ah Mau finished the Dragons 2013 NRL season with him playing in 15 matches and scoring a try. On 24 September 2013, Ah Mau extended his contracted with the Dragons for a further 2 years till the end of the 2015 season.^[12] In October 2013, Ah Mau was selected for Samoa to participate in their 2013 World Cup campaign. Ah Mau played in 3 of Samoa's four Tournament matches.

2014

On 14 February 2014, Ah Mau was selected in the Dragons inaugural 2014 Auckland Nines squad.^[13] On 3 May 2014, Ah Mau played for Samoa in the 2014 Pacific Rugby League International against Fiji at Penrith Stadium. Ah Mau played at second-row in Samoa's 32-16 win.^[14] Ah Mau finished off the Dragons 2014 NRL season with him playing in 23 matches and scoring a try. On 8 September 2014, Ah Mau was selected in the Samoa train-on squad for the 2014 Four Nations .^[15] On 7 October 2014, Ah Mau was selected in the Samoa national rugby league team final 24 man squad for the 2014 Four Nations series.^[16][17]

2015

On 2 May, Ah Mau played for Samoa in their Polynesian Cup clash with Pacific rivals Tonga, playing at second-row in Samoa's 18-16 win at Cbus Super Stadium.^[18] On 22 May 2015, Ah Mau re-signed with the Dragons on a 3-year contract to the end of the 2018 season.^[19][20] He played in every game for the Dragons in the 2015 season^[21] and earned the 2015 Dragons' Player of the Year medal at the Annual Red V Awards Ceremony.

2016

On 7 May 2016, Ah Mau played for Samoa in the 2016 Polynesian Cup against Tonga, where he started at second-row in the 18-6 win at Parramatta Stadium.^[22] Later in the year he captained Samoa in their historical test match against Fiji in Apia. Unfortunately he couldn't lead his country to victory, as Samoa let go of an 18–0 lead to lose the test 18–20.^[23]

References