Kele Lasaqa scored yet another try for Bay of Plenty, bringing his tally to 4 tries in his 4 NPC matches and maintaining his 100% strike record.

A loose pass from the Waikato backline resulted in Lasaqa booting the ball downfield and with no one to match his pace, he recovered the ball and ran the rest of the way untouched.

The Steamers too good for the Mooloos 41-5.

Former Wests Tigers SG Ball Prop Jekope Sovau made his Pro D2 debut on Friday night (Saturday morning FJT) for Dax in their round 5 clash with Provence.

He was named on the bench and made his entry into the game in the 60th minute.

Provence were too strong for the visitors, winning 42-15.

Castres Prop Atunaisa Sokobale made his Top 14 debut on the weekend, coming off the bench in their 59-12 loss to Toulouse.

It was a baptism of fire for the 20 year old former Sigatoka Methodist student. Up against one of the best sides in the competition, he was thrust into the contest early in the 2nd half, playing 20 minutes in his first shift.

Castres scrum struggled all night but positive signs for the young lad getting an opportunity this early in his career.

Agen won their 4th consecutive match on Friday morning after defeating Beziers 21-10.

It was an old fashioned slugfest in the first half with neither side scoring a try, the only points via a penalty goal to Beziers.

1 minute into the second half Agen would finally score the first try of the night through veteran Centre Kolinio Ramoka. Stepping off his left foot near the opposition tryline, he beat 3 defenders on his way to score his 2nd try in as many games.

Bath Prop Billy Sela scored his first Premiership Rugby try in Bath's season opening game against Harlequins.

The England U20 rep powered over from close range in the 33rd minute as the visitors mounted a comeback after trailing early in the first half.

In other Premiership news, Eroni Mawi came off the bench in Saracens 39-17 win over the Newcastle Red Bulls while Kalaveti Ravouvou and Viliame Mata have both been named on the Bristol bench for their match against Leicester.

Albert Tuisue scored his first Pro D2 try for Provence who notched their second win of the season - over Dax 42-15.

The home side were awarded a penalty try after only 4 minutes and 3 minutes later they found themselves in a similar situation, with a rolling maul close to the Dax tryline. They pushed over once again and this time Tuisue got the ball down.

Dax kept things competitive in the first half but couldn't contain the home side in the 2nd half.

Brive hosted Grenoble in round 5 in a clash of heavyweights.

The home side conceded the first points, a penalty to Grenoble before scoring 2 tries in 8 minutes including the first 5 pointer of the season for winger Asaeli Tuivuaka.

Neither side came into the match with the type of consistency that saw them go deep into the finals last season but both sides came out firing for this encounter.

Brive won the game 24-21.

Waisea Nayacalevu was announced as the new Brand Ambassador for the Dubai Knights.

The former Flying Fijians skipper who is contracted to Nice for 2 seasons, including their current campaign, spends his day's off and holidays helping the club with skills, training and exposure.

They released the following on their official Instagram page;

<em>"Knights proudly welcome our Brand Ambassador Waisea Nayacalevu</em>

From the islands to the world stage, Waisea embodies the true spirit of rugby and the fire of experience. Now, he joins us in Dubai to inspire our journey forward.

As Brand Ambassador, Waisea will share his experience, spirit, and strength to guide the next chapter of Knights RFC, standing tall with our 3 C’s: Courage, Commitment, Community.

Together, we move with purpose, pride, and power."

Former Fiji Bati second rower Tariq Sims has announced his retirement from rugby league after a 14-year professional career. In an emotional Instagram post, he thanked those who supported him along the way.

“As I close this chapter of my career, I want to take a moment to thank the people who made it possible,” Sims wrote.

He paid special tribute to his wife, Ashleigh:
“To my wife Ashleigh, thank you for your endless love, patience, and support through every high and low. This crazy journey wouldn’t have been possible without your strength behind me and encouragement to keep pushing when I didn’t think I could find it in myself to keep going.”

His career started back in 2011 with the North Queensland Cowboys where he remained until 2014 before a 2 year stint with Newcastle, 7 years with the Dragons and then the Storm before finishing off his career in the Super League with Catalans.

He represented the Bati at the 2013 RLWC and played 6 Origin matches for NSW from 2018-2022.

The Roosters have suffered a major blow with star winger Mark Nawaqanitawase reportedly informing the club he will leave at the end of 2026 to chase his dream of playing for the Wallabies at the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

The 25-year-old, one of the Tricolours’ best in his debut NRL season after joining post-Paris Olympics, has reportedly turned down a $700,000-a-year offer to instead pursue a $1 million deal in European rugby.

“We were given an indication weeks ago that Mark wanted to go back to rugby union and we respected his wishes. However we are extremely confident he will return to the Roosters after the Rugby World Cup,” a club official told News Corp.