08/06/2026
Congratulations Rico for being the Wellington Club Rugby Player of the Week. Good to see our athletes excelling across all sports 🏉 🖤🤍❤️
This week’s Performer of the Week is Northern United Rugby Football Club 's Rico Poutama.
On the club’s Old Timers’ Day, Poutama scored five tries, playing in two matches. He scored four tries for the Colts in their 58-34 win over OBU and then scored the last try of the day for the Norths Premiers off the bench in their 31-48 defeat to Wainuiomata.
Norths Colts fullback Poutama scored a hat-trick over the last 10 minutes of the first half. All three of these tries will be good to watch on the highlights reel, in particular his try just before halftime that was a Porirua Park special.
Poutama is a product of the Paraparaumu Juniors just up the road and attended Paraparaumu College and was in their First XV in 2024 coached by his father Les Poutama that played in the Premiership competition. He switched to Wellington College for his final year last year.
Poutama is a gifted athlete in track and field, a regional age-grade high jump and triple jump champion and nationally ranked field athlete and has been in winning 100m relay teams. He was the top overall point scorer for Wellington College at the McEvedy Shield, winning the Open Long Jump, coming second in the High Jump and Triple Jump, third in Discus, and fourth in the 100m.
Back to rugby, Norths are in re-building mode and players such at Poutama are their future if they stay fit and firing over the next couple of seasons.
This coming Saturday, the Norths Premiers host Tawa at Porirua Park and the Norths Colts travel to play the Upper Hutt Rams, so two tough games ahead.
Photo credit: Chainsawphotos
