Two young talents have signed for the Southland Stags.

Crusaders Academy Lock Caleb Aperahama and former Otago Midfielder Matt Whaanga have signed on with the Stags for 2021.

Both players have made the move South and are aligned with Woodlands for the club season. 

Caleb Aperahama, 24, is a dominant force in Lock, standing 6'6 and over 130kgs.

He has an impressive track record with game time in the Chiefs Schools side in his early days, NZ U17's, Canterbury B where he was named Player of The Year and most recently Crusaders Development. 

Aperahama was also the recent Captain of Sydenham Rugby Club in Christchurch. 

With the loss of Manaaki Selby-Rickit this season, head coach Dale MacLeod is pleased to have a player of Aperahama's ability joining the locking stocks. 

"Caleb will offer us something a little different from our other locks. 

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"He is a big man who will get us over a gain line. He has a good skill set with very good offloading ability.  

"If he is prepared to put in the work then Super Rugby becomes a real option for him."

Joining the Midfield is Matt Whaanga, 23, who has played the last three NPC seasons with Otago racking up 17 games at 1st class level. 

Whaanga is a former South Otago High student, who many Southlanders will remember for notching up 60 individual points in one game against James Hargest College in 2014. 

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He went on to spent time with the Highlanders Schools Squad and Taieri Rugby Club in Dunedin. 

"Matt brings good experience with him and will create good competition in our midfield. He brings good size and a skill set to match. 

"He has the ability to go to the next level. Getting consistent game time at NPC will help achieve this. I expect him to make his mark in the Stags over the next couple of seasons."

Both players made their debut for Woodlands over the weekend and say they look forward to meeting the Southland community and working with the High-Performance group over the coming month.