NRL: Lousi family connection extended

Sione Lousi. Photo / Sarah Ivey

The Warriors have shown some brotherly love by signing promising Lousi siblings Sione and Sam to extended contracts.

Sione, 21, is a tall and rugged second-rower who played seven NRL games last season but he's dwarfed by his younger brother Sam, 19, who stands 1.98cm and weighs 118kg. They are dimensions which make him the tallest player on the Warriors books as well as one of their heaviest.

Sam is rated as one of the most promising players at the Warriors and was being chased aggressively by other NRL clubs after helping the Junior Warriors to last year's NYC title and then performing well for the Junior Kiwis against Australia.

But the ball-playing prop/second-rower penned a two-year extension to stay at Mt Smart until the end of 2013 and develop alongside Sione, who has signed on for two more years with an option of another year in 2014.

"I'd love the chance to play with Sione in the NRL," Sam said. "That would mean a lot for both of us and for our family.

"The only time we've ever played together was at school." If Sam graduates to the NRL, it will see the Lousis become the fourth set of brothers to play for the Warriors after Jerry and Anthony Seuseu, Louis and Vinnie Anderson and Tea and Iva Ropati. They could be beaten to that mark, however, by Sam and Steve Rapira. Steve is yet to make his first-grade debut for the Warriors after recently signing from the Cowboys but the pair have played trial matches together.

"It's really exciting and also important for us to have Sione and Sam signed up," said Warriors recruitment manager Dean Bell. "As players with real potential, they're both great examples of the benefits of the Warriors development policy."