Saints welcome Waqa Blake

St Helens have announced the signing of Fijian international centre Waqa Blake on a one-year deal.

Saints have been working on recruiting a player who would finally complete their 2024 squad ahead of the new Betfred Super League season - and with their number 3 shirt previously left vacant, Waqa Blake will now take that jersey and join the Red V.

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Blake, a speedy outside back, has 165 NRL games to his name and has scored 62 tries in the competition. He has spent the last four and a half seasons with Parramatta Eels and became a key member of their squad that reached the 2022 Grand Final.

He has also played for his native country Fiji on five occasions, mostly recently in the 2023 Pacific Championships where he scored three times.

Speaking to saintsrlfc.com, Waqa Blake expressed his eagerness to get started over in the UK:

"I can't wait! I was excited to get over as soon as Paul (Wellens) and Mike (Rush) gave me a ring to say it was done, especially to a great club like St Helens.

"I'm looking forward to switching from the heat to the cold! To come to a club like St Helens where they've always been in the top four or top two, and then such a big thing winning four-in-a-row, I'm hoping I can fit in, and we can win another one.

"Just looking at all the players that they have there, all the strike, I'm keen to get to work."

The acquisition of Waqa Blake will be an exciting one for both St Helens and the Betfred Super League competition, and the Lautoka-born player has heard all about rugby league in the northern hemisphere from a former Saint.

"I think it's getting better (Super League)," Blake continued. "I saw Saints beat Penrith last year in the World Club Challenge, no one would have thought it.

"The quality of football is getting better and you can see that in the England side that played Tonga.

"I've played with Kevin Naiqama and he killed it at Saints, and I watched the Grand Final where he won Man of the Match. He told me a lot about Super League when were in Fiji camp, how special it is over there, and that Saints are a great bunch of boys, so I'm looking forward to it.

"We all know the quality of a player like Hopoate (Will) and it's very special to me and to be able to get that jersey. I want to go out there, put my head down, and work hard. Hopefully, I can also come away with the shirt at the end of the year, but first things first, I'm just excited to get over there and start working.

"We will be trying to go all the way this year."

Head Coach Paul Wellens also shared the St Helens' delight at signing Waqa Blake commenting: 

"We have been on the lookout for some time now and we had other bits around the salary cap that we needed to sort; in retaining our own players which is always important. But this has also been at the forefront of our minds, and we are so pleased to bring in a player of Waqa's quality into the squad. 

"He is making a big commitment in coming over to the other side of the world and we're confident he will settle in well and like it over here. We have great success in terms of our overseas players doing that and going out on the field to perform well. From our end, he's going to come highly motivated and come to prove a point which will only help him and his performances, as well as our group."

When discussing what Waqa Blake could bring to his team and the competition of the Betfred Super League, Wellens was keen to establish he wants his newest Saint to feel at home.

"We want to make sure he settles into our environment and builds up a really good bond with the playing group. I am sure if he does that and works hard in training, given the qualities he has as a player, that will reflect in his performances on the field as well. We are prepared to give him time to settle and not expect too much too soon."