TEVITA Pangai Junior’s contract U-turn with Warrington Wolves has led to him giving rugby union a crack – at amateur level.
The 29-year-old signed for sixth-tier French club Sporting Club Leucate Corbières Méditerranée XV earlier this week and has been named on the bench for their reserve team’s clash with Etoile Sportive Gimontoise tomorrow.
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SC Leucate are based 24 miles north of Perpignan, where Pangai Junior spent 2025 in rugby league with Catalans Dragons.
The prop forward had been confirmed as a 2026 signing for The Wire back in July on a one-year deal.
However, Wolves chiefs confirmed at the end of October that the Tongan international, who had spells in the NRL with Brisbane Broncos (2016–21), Penrith Panthers (2021), Canterbury Bulldogs (2022-23) and the Dolphins (2024), had informed them of his change of heart.
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A Wolves statement at the time said: “Tevita Pangai Junior has recently informed the club of his decision not to join for the 2026 season.
“While we are disappointed, the club accepts his decision, as we remain committed to building a squad of players who are fully invested in the club and its ambitions.”
Pangai Junior’s signing was part of an overhaul of The Wire’s middle unit for 2026, with Liam Byrne and Toafofoa Sipley joining him.
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But instead Pangai Junior has decided to stay in France and attempt to climb the ladder in the 15-a-side code.
SC Leucate XV issued a statement announcing Pangai Junior had joined them on a temporary basis.
“Having reached the end of his contract with the Catalans Dragons, he decided to stay in the south of France where his wife is expected to give birth to their child,” reads the statement.
“Completely amateur, put in touch by mutual friends, he wants to discover and progress in rugby union.
“He hopes to find a professional club in the future that matches his level.”
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