{"id":307634,"date":"2025-07-31T22:08:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T22:08:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/307634\/"},"modified":"2025-07-31T22:08:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T22:08:11","slug":"glasgow-warriors-sign-ottavio-tuipulotu-as-seventh-hooker-in-squad-for-2025-26-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/307634\/","title":{"rendered":"Glasgow Warriors sign Ottavio Tuipulotu as seventh hooker in squad for 2025-26 season"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"GlasgowGlasgow Warriors will have seven hookers on their books next season with the recruitment of Ottavio Tuipulotu. Image: \u00a9 Craig Watson –
\nwww.craigwatson.co.uk <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n

GLASGOW WARRIORS have signed Ottavio Tuipulotu \u2013 the youngest brother of Scotland captain Sione and of Edinburgh midfielder Mosese \u2013 on a two-year contract.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The arrival of the 21-year-old at Scotstoun will take the number of hookers on the books at the club up to seven. Johnny Matthews, Grant Stewart<\/strong> and Angus Fraser<\/strong> are currently on deals that run until at least next summer, and it is understood that the contract Gregor Hiddleston<\/strong> signed in Februay 2024 will also run out at the end of the upcoming 2025-26 season (although the details have not been released). Meanwhile, academy prospects Joe Roberts<\/strong> and Seb Stephen<\/strong> have been earmarked as two of the most promising prospects in the Scotland Under-20s team which recently competed at the Junior World Championship in Italy, with the latter having made an impressive Warriors debut against Leinster in May.<\/p>\n

Edinburgh are also well stocked in this position with Dylan Richardson<\/strong> having joined fellow Scotland internationals Ewan Ashman <\/strong>and Patrick Harrison<\/strong> in the capital club\u2019s senior squad for next season, while former Scotland Under-20s caps Harri Morris<\/strong> and Jerry Blyth-Lafferty<\/strong> should also be looking for some regular game-time during the campaign ahead.<\/p>\n

TOL Pod: Episode 48: The MCG breakdown \u2026 and what\u2019s going on with the Scotland Women\u2019s team?<\/a><\/p>\n

The Monday Bulletin (28th July): Aussies head to Bennetton and Farrell not going back on the tools<\/a><\/p>\n

Australia v Lions Test Two: 8 talking points after tourists recover from 18-points down to clinch the series<\/a><\/p>\n

Tuipulotu makes the move north from the Waratahs, where he has been based since late 2024 following the demise of the Melbourne Rebels (who he signed for on a development contract in November 2023). According to a Waratahs spokesperson, he was not under contract with the franchise and has not played any competitive rugby for the Sydney-based outfit amid stiff competition including Wallabies hooker Dave Porecki, Ethan Dobbins, <\/strong>Mahe Vailanu <\/strong>(the younger brother of Glasgow forward Sione Vailanu<\/strong>) and Julian Heaven. <\/strong>The Waratahs have also recruited Crusaders Super Rugby title-winner Ioane Moananu<\/strong> across the Tasman for next season.<\/p>\n

A Melbourne native, Tuipulotu was capped eight times by Australia Under-20s during 2023-24 having overcome two knee reconstruction surgeries before his 18th birthday. Like his brothers, he qualifies to play for Scotland through his Greenock-born grandmother.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m really looking forward to moving to Glasgow,\u201d said Tuipulotu. \u201cI\u2019ve been following the team for the last couple years and have seen how well they\u2019ve been doing, not to mention how much the fans get around the boys.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2060I\u2019ve spoken to Nonz [Sione] about Glasgow a lot, and he\u2019s just told me that while it\u2019s different to home \u2013 especially being a lot colder than Australia! \u2013 the culture within the team and within the community in Glasgow is so strong.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as Glasgow sent me the contract offer, Sione was the first person I called, and he told me to pack my bags and join him up north!<\/p>\n

\u201cI spoke to [Warriors head coach] Franco Smith<\/strong> earlier in the year, too, mostly just speaking about how I was doing and how my rugby was going, as well as the possibility of moving up to Glasgow. I\u2019m really looking forward to being able to work with Franco and the rest of the staff. I\u2019ve seen how much work they\u2019ve done for the players, and that\u2019s shown on the field when the boys play.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be able to play at Scotstoun would be an unreal moment in my life. I\u2019ve seen and heard how electric the fans are with the atmosphere they create, and how much they back our boys \u2013 I can\u2019t wait to meet them all!\u201d<\/p>\n

Smith said: \u201cTavi is a player that we have been tracking for a while, and we\u2019re pleased that he has decided to follow Sione in making the move north to continue his rugby journey with us.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe brings dynamism in both attack and defence, as well as a real desire to work hard and learn from both the coaches and the players around him.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look forward to working closely with him upon his arrival at Scotstoun, as we continue to build towards the new season.\u201d<\/p>\n

The eldest Tuipulotu \u2013 Sione \u2013 has been a big hit since landing in Scotland in the summer of 2021, first with Glasgow Warriors, then with the national team after making his cap debut against Tonga that October (taking over as captain of the side ahead of the 2024 Autumn Tests) and then most recently with the British & Irish Lions in his native Australia this summer. He played in the first Test against the Wallabies two weekends ago, missed the second Test with a hamstring injury, but is back in the frame for this coming Saturday\u2019s tour denouement in Sydney.<\/p>\n

The 28-year-old centre signed a contract extension in November 2024 which will keep him at Warriors until the summer of 2026, having spoken just a few months earlier about his desire to have Ottavio join him and Mosese in Scotland.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cGenuinely, I think if my littlest brother comes over here, he might end up being better than me and my brother, my sister as well,\u201d he said. \u201cHe had a really rough run with injuries \u2013 he had two knee reconstructions before he was 18 \u2013\u00a0but he\u2019s really dedicated to his rugby.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t make any decisions for him, but if it was up to me, he would do one year there, try and get as much rugby under his belt in Sydney and then come over.<\/p>\n

\u201cSess [Mosese] has been selling him that. We had a group FaceTime the other day and Sess was like: \u2018Bro, it\u2019s not what you think. I got to Edinburgh and it\u2019s like\u00a0Harry Potter\u00a0here, bro. I should have come ages ago\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s like Sess was trying to sell him the dream massively. But I can understand, when you\u2019re on Bondi Beach you feel like your life\u2019s pretty good. But I\u2019m hoping to see him sooner rather than later.\u201d<\/p>\n

24-year-old Mosese signed for Edinburgh ahead of the 2024-25 season<\/a> and featured in 16 out of 17 games for the capital club in his debut campaign and represented Scotland A versus Chile last November before suffering a a knee injury in early May which cut short his season and ruled him out of Scotland\u2019s Skyscanner Pacific Tour this summer. <\/p>\n

\n

TOL Pod: Episode 48: The MCG breakdown \u2026 and what\u2019s going on with the Scotland Women\u2019s team?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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