Full name | Isaac Arapata Salmon | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | 5 September 1996 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Christchurch, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 181 cm (5 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 116 kg (18 st 4 lb; 256 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Nelson College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Isaac Arapata Salmon (born 5 September 1996) [1] is a New Zealand rugby union player, who currently plays as a prop for Hawke's Bay in New Zealand's National Provincial Championship. [2] He also plays for New Orleans Gold in Major League Rugby (MLR) in the United States. [3] Salmon was educated at Nelson College from 2011 to 2014.
While not included in the Tasman squad that was named for the 2017 Mitre 10 Cup season, [4] Salmon made his debut for the Mako on 27 August 2017 against Manawatu. [5] He went on to play 6 games for the province in his first season.
He was named in the Blues squad for the 2018 Super Rugby season, but did not play. [6]
Salmon was part of the Tasman team that won the Mitre 10 Cup in 2019 for the first time. [7] He was again part of the Mako side that won their second premiership title in a row in 2020. [8] Tasman again made the final in 2021, with Salmon coming off the bench, but the Mako this time lost 20–23 to Waikato. [9]
In 2022 and 2023, Salmon played for Toronto Arrows in Major League Rugby. [10]
Salmon was signed by Hawke's Bay for the 2023 Bunnings NPC season. [2] Due to injury, he only played 3 games for his new province that season, but he was part of the team that played its very first NPC final, which the Magpies narrowly lost 19–22 to Taranaki. [11]
On 13 November 2023, New Orleans Gold announced that the club had signed Salmon for the 2024 Major League Rugby season. [3] He made his debut for the club on 9 March 2024 in its round 2 game against Anthem Rugby Carolina. [12]