NOLA Gold Rugby Club Kane Thompson enters year two of his three-year contract extension through the 2022 Major League Rugby season. The 39-year-old lock/No.8 is 6’7″ and weighs 250 lbs.
Kane played 142 minutes in 4 matches, starting once, during the Covid-19 shortened 2020 season. He also played for New Orleans RFC and was a coach with NOLA Gold and with the Ohio Aviators at the World Tens Series in Bermuda in October/November. Kane started against Austin Gilgronis during the team’s 2021 preseason match.
In 2019, he played 851 minutes in 15 matches, starting 13. He carried 88 times for 375 meters, made 1 tackle break, 3 offloads, and had 116 tackles.
Thompson, who is from Wellington, New Zealand, fulfills an important team need at lock or No.8.
Thompson is a season veteran rugby player. He played for Wellington College from 2002-2005 for the Wellington Lions in the National Provincial Championship. He then played in the Mitre 10 Cup for Southland from 2005-07 and for the Highlanders from 2006-2007.
Thompson then left New Zealand and played for Dax in the French Top 14 League. Then it was back to Southland in 2010, Hawke’s Bay in 2011, before playing Super Rugby with the Chiefs in 2012. For the remainder of 2012, he played in the Japan Top League for the Canon Eagles.
In 2014 Thompson returned to the Chiefs, making six appearances before signing with the English Premiership Newcastle Falcons from 2014-2016.
In 2016 he returned to New Zealand to play with the Manawatu Turbos and in 2017 with the Taranaki Bulls. In 2017 he also attended Massey University.
National Team Rugby
Thompson began representative rugby, playing for the New Zealand Under-21s, making eight appearances from 2002-2003.
He played Senior International rugby for Samoa, his grandmother’s home nation, from 2007-2015. The first of his 33 caps came when he debuted against Fiji at Apia on May 19, 2007. His last test was against Scotland at Newcastle on October 10, 2015. During his 33 appearances, he started 29 times.
Thompson also played in three Rugby World Cups in 2007, 2011, and in 2015. He started all ten of his appearances.
NOLA Gold Rugby Club 2019 Comments
Kane Thompson’s strength is in the set pieces. That makes him a valuable addition to Nola Gold Rugby Club.
Ryan Fitzgerald, General Manager, said that “Kane was an extremely valuable piece for us last year and instrumental to our success. The knowledge, experience, toughness, and physicality that he brings is a huge factor.
The young guys coming up learned a ton from Kane and he helped bring them up to speed quickly. It’s like having another coach on the field.
He’s a tremendous leader and we’re really looking forward to having him on board for the next three years in that same player-coach role.”
