Xavier Saifoloi: Crusader 297 in a title-winning season, tipped by Lima Sopoaga as a future Test player

Xavier Saifoloi was not in Waikato's original squad when he made his provincial debut in 2023, and he was not a household name when the Crusaders picked him for 2025. Within four months of that call he was Crusader number 297, a member of the squad that won the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific title, and by September 2025 the former All Black Lima Sopoaga was tipping him as a possible future Test player. The 23-year-old blindside flanker from East Auckland's Botany Downs Secondary College is contracted to the Crusaders until the end of 2027.

Melbourne, Botany and Hamilton

Saifoloi was born on 23 June 2003. His Wikipedia entry records his birthplace as Melbourne, but his rugby was learned in East Auckland. According to his Crusaders profile he played in the Botany Downs Secondary College First XV from Year 10 onwards, and his all-round sporting ability earned him most valuable player awards in both senior rugby and volleyball. In 2021 he was named in the Blues Under 18 wider training squad.

After school he moved south to the Waikato academy in Hamilton, where he studied sport science at university and played his club rugby for University. The Crusaders profile adds two more honours from those years: selection for a Super Rugby Under 20 Barbarians team, and for the New Zealand Universities side that toured Japan. The rugbyhistory.co.nz database lists one game for New Zealand Universities in 2023.

Waikato

Saifoloi had not been named in the Waikato squad for the 2023 NPC when he got his chance. On 16 August 2023 Waikato played Hawke's Bay in Napier, and he made his provincial debut in a 35-32 loss, a match the Crusaders' profile describes as a narrow defeat. He played six games for Waikato that season, three as a starting flanker and three off the bench, according to rugbyhistory.co.nz.

He was named in the full squad for 2024 and played eight games, five of them starts. His first provincial try came on 29 September 2024 against Southland at Rugby Park in Invercargill, after 11 minutes of a 38-14 Waikato win.

In 2025, with a Crusaders contract behind him, he played nine more games for Waikato. He scored against Wellington in Hamilton on 9 August 2025, in the 49th minute of a 35-24 loss, and by the end of the season his provincial record stood at 23 games and two tries. On 12 September 2025, before Waikato played North Harbour in Hamilton, Newstalk ZB reported that his team-mate Lima Sopoaga, the former All Black, had named Saifoloi and Oli Mathis as possible future Test players.

Crusader number 297

On 12 November 2024 the Crusaders named Saifoloi in their squad for the 2025 season. The move had a family angle. "My family are big Crusaders supporters," he said later, describing the moment he received his cap number as "an unreal feeling".

That moment came on 15 March 2025, a sunny Saturday afternoon in Christchurch, against the Western Force. Saifoloi came off the bench in the 61st minute of a 55-33 win, and the club's match report named him the newest Crusader, number 297. It was a memorable day to start: wing Macca Springer scored five tries, tying Sean Wainui's record for the most tries in a Super Rugby game.

After two appearances off the bench, Saifoloi was handed his first start for the Crusaders at blindside flanker, alongside Christian Lio-Willie, for the derby against the Highlanders in Dunedin on 26 April 2025. The Crusaders won 43-10, a bonus-point victory built on defence.

Those were his three games of the 2025 season, and the season ended with a title. The Crusaders beat the Chiefs 16-12 in the final in Christchurch on 21 June 2025. Saifoloi credited a pre-season message from David Havili for the mood that made it possible. "David Havili mentioned in our pre-season that we needed everyone all in," he said.

Signing on

On 17 July 2025, a few weeks after his 22nd birthday, the Crusaders announced that Saifoloi had extended his contract to the end of 2027. "It's pretty awesome to be able to stick around," he said, and he named the main reason as "how much people care for each other at this club". He also set out his aims in one line: "I'm here to be a Crusader. I'm here to learn and grow."

He had said he was looking forward to playing at the new One New Zealand Stadium in 2026. His three appearances that season all came off the bench, all.rugby records show, including the 29-18 home win over the Highlanders on 14 March 2026 in which Johnny Lee scored twice on debut.

Style and standing

The Crusaders' profile stresses his natural talent, the same quality that won him volleyball honours at school. all.rugby's records show that nearly all of his starts for Waikato and the Crusaders have come at blindside flanker, with the odd game at openside. Wikipedia lists him at 195 cm and 114 kg.

The strongest outside endorsement came from Sopoaga, who had played 16 Tests for the All Blacks and shared a Waikato dressing room with him in 2025. Inside the Crusaders, Saifoloi talks most about culture. "I've been really impressed with the culture of the team," he said in his club profile.

Where he is now

When the Crusaders named their 2027 squad under new head coach Scott Hansen on 28 October 2026, Saifoloi was listed among the loose forwards with Ethan Blackadder, Dominic Gardiner and Christian Lio-Willie, ahead of new signing Finn McLeod and the promoted trio of Xavier Treacy, Oli Mathis and Johnny Lee. He is contracted to the club until the end of the 2027 season.

Career at a glance

Waikato and 2025 Crusaders figures are from rugbyhistory.co.nz, which runs to the end of 2025; Waikato try dates are from the Wikipedia NPC season records. The 2026 Crusaders figure is from all.rugby. RUGBE found no record of Saifoloi playing in the 2026 NPC.