Young prop Siale Lauaki has extended his contract with the Hurricanes through until the 2027 Super Rugby Pacific season.
An exciting front row prospect, the 22-year-old – who can play on either side of the scrum – has opted to extend his stay with the Hurricanes after first signing with the club in May 2023.
In doing so, he rounds out a strong cohort of props for next season alongside All Blacks pair Tyrel Lomax and Pasilio Tosi, All Blacks squad member Tevita Mafileo, All Blacks XV representative Xavier Numia, and Māori All Blacks regular Pouri Rakete-Stones.
“This is home for me. To re-sign and be here for a couple more years is a dream come true,” Lauaki said.
“I am really grateful to be part of such a great club with a strong culture, and where I feel like I belong.
“Being in this environment provides me with a great opportunity to continue my development alongside world-class props and players who I can keep learning from.”
A Wellington local, Lauaki was a schoolboy standout for St Patrick’s College Wellington, where he earned selection in the Hurricanes U18 and New Zealand Schools teams in 2020 and 2021.
He was the only Wellington-based player to feature for the 2021 New Zealand Schools side, which led to him being crowned College Sport Wellington Sportsman of the Year.
Over the following two years, Lauaki played for the Hurricanes U20 team, helping them to a second-place finish at the 2023 Super Rugby Aoteaora U20 tournament, and the New Zealand U20 side.
During his time with the national age-grade team, Lauaki won the 2022 Oceania Rugby U20 Championship title on the Sunshine Coast and played every match at the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championship in South Africa.
While still a teenager, he made his NPC debut for Wellington from the bench in their season-opening win over Bay of Plenty in 2022.
That year, Lauaki was part of the Lions squad that claimed the Ranfurly Shield and became national provincial champions for the first time in 22 years.
He has since added more provincial silverware to his name after Wellington clinched last year’s NPC title, and has racked up 32 appearances and scored three tries at that level.
Lauaki’s first opportunity in Super Rugby Pacific came during the 2024 campaign, when he made his debut as a reserve prop during a win over the Fijian Drua in Suva.
After appearing three more times during the 2025 season, Hurricanes head coach Clark Laidlaw is excited about what Lauaki has to offer as he looks to realise his potential over the coming years.
“Siale’s a local boy who’s come through the Wellington, Hurricanes, and national age-grade systems, and we feel like he’s got a massive ceiling,” Laidlaw said.
“He’s been able to learn his trade behind Tyrel and Pasi, and alongside Tevita and Xavier, so he’s got a great opportunity to learn off some of the best props in the competition.
“We look forward to him maturing and continuing to grow his professionalism and his experience.”
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Siale Lauaki
Date of Birth: 30 May 2003 (22-years-old)
Place of Birth: Auckland
Village: Saina Faleata and Samatau
Position: Prop
Height: 1.87m
Weight: 115kg
Hurricanes Number: #316
Hurricanes Caps: 4 (Debut vs Fijian Drua, 19 April 2024)
Hurricanes Points: 5 (1 try)
Playing Career: New Zealand U20 (2022-2023), Wellington (2022-present), Hurricanes (2024-present)
Honours: Oceania Rugby U20 Championship (2022), 2x NPC (2022, 2024), Ranfurly Shield (2022-2023)
