USA STAR MATAITOGA EXTENDS LOUGHBOROUGH LIGHTNING CONTRACT

Loughborough Lightning have locked in USA international Bulou Mataitoga on an extended contract.

The versatile back joined the African Violets in 2021 and made her 50th appearance during February’s Premiership Women’s Rugby 2024/25 final round encounter with Trailfinders Women, at cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens.

Capable in the centres, wing and at fullback, the 31-year-old has scored ten tries across her four seasons at Loughborough so far.

Born in Fiji before growing up in California, Mataitoga broke onto the international scene first with USA Sevens before making her 15s debut against England in 2019. During the recent Pacific Four Series, she moved to 25 caps.

“The main reason I am re-signing for Lightning is for the people,” said Mataitoga. “They’re a great group I’ve been with for the last four seasons. The environment is competitive and encourages growth every week, and I like the trajectory of where we’re headed.

“Last season had its ups and downs we had a few injuries and didn’t get off to the best start, but we turned it around in the second half of the season by getting some key wins against Saracens and Trailfinders at the end, and we were playing the kind of rugby we wanted to play.

“Our fans are special to us. The numbers grow every year and it’s cool to see more young kids at our games. It’s a one-of-a-kind experience to play at cinch Stadium.”

Mataitoga is the latest international to re-sign for Lightning, following Sadia Kabeya, Lilli Ives Campion, Leia Brebner-Holden, Bo Westcombe-Evans, Becky Boyd and Krissy Scurfield in committing their futures to Loughborough.

“Baz is great for the environment and is a fantastic role model for the younger players,” said Lightning head coach Nathan Smith. “She brings a relaxed vibe to the team, and it shows there are multiple ways to express yourself, which allows you to perform in high performance sport. Just because she is a relaxed character doesn’t mean she doesn’t take it seriously. Baz is an extremely switched-on player, and we are lucky to have her re-sign with us.

“It probably helped her that she stayed in one position last season. Baz’s biggest asset is probably her versatility, however that probably doesn’t help her sometimes when it comes to continuously improving in an area. I thought her having a consistent run in one position certainly improved her as a player, she’s had some fantastic moments last season.”