Robbie Fruean

Robert Fruean (pronunciation: /fru??n/; born 13 July 1988 in Wellington) is a New Zealand rugby union footballer. He is a midfield back and plays outside centre (13) and sometimes on the wing. He is a former Porirua College head boy. He is of Samoan heritage.

In 2007, he made the NZ team for the 2007 Under 19 Rugby World Championship. He led New Zealand to a championship win beating South Africa in the final. He also won the IRB Under-19 Player of the Year the same year.

He made his National Provincial Championship debut for Wellington against Auckland. He played 12 games for them scoring three tries before getting struck by illness. He subsequently underwent open-heart surgery for rheumatic fever, a potentially life-threatening inflammation of the heart.

In 2009 returned to rugby, making his Super 14 debut for the Hurricanes against Blues. This was his first and last game for the Hurricanes after which he defected to the Crusaders and played for them in the 2010 Super 14 season and the 2011 Super Rugby season, where he formed a formidable partnership with fellow centre Sonny Bill Williams.

He made his 2010 ITM Cup debut for Canterbury, scoring two tries against Manawatu. The next week Fruean scored three more against North Harbour. He finished the season tied as the top try scorer with Lelia Masaga with 10 tries. In 2012, on the back of his third season with Canterbury, he was named ITM Cup player of the year at the New Zealand Rugby Awards.