Kids Round Guest Article - Stanley Solomon

Stanley Solomon on Rugby, Dunedin and Life off the Pitch

On the 21st of August 2025 the Highlanders rugby team would announce the signings of three spectacular young men. One of these players was Wellingtonian Stanley Solomon who at just twenty  years old was signing his first Super Rugby contract. Nine months on I talked to Stanley about life in Dunedin, rugby and much more.

Solomon was born in 2005 and started playing rugby at three years old. agHe would play his junior rugby at the Wellington Axeman where Solomon said, “I just fell in love with the game as any young kid would”. As Solomon moved on to high school at Wellington College he realised he was quite a good player. When asked about when he realised he could have a rugby career he replied  “I think when I was about fifteen I realised I could have a crack at this”.  As Solomon progressed through the ranks to the 1st XV it was in year 13 where he was first selected to represent New Zealand. On the subject of joining the New Zealand Schools side in 2022 Solomon stated, “ I was year 13, I was lucky enough to get picked into New Zealand Schools and I think they just grew, grew my love for the game and grew my hunger to play”. After finishing school Solomon would move on to great things in rugby.

Solomon would be called into the Hurricanes Under 20 for their upcoming Super Under 20’s tournament. When asked about this tournament Solomon would say, “We went into the Super Under 20s tournament and played, played pretty good, I played some good footy”. Solomon said, “I didn't think much of my performance until I caught up with the Wellington Lions coach”. That coach would tell him that the All Blacks Under 20’s squad was to be named and he thought Solomon had a good shot. Solomon, who at this time was playing his second year for Petone Rugby Club he had just won Club rookie of the year and the Billy Wallace trophy for best player in Wellington Club Rugby after a stellar first year. On one random Sunday cleaning up the Petone club rooms Solomon remembers his phone ringing midway through the clean up, “it was the assistant coach of the New Zealand Under 20s, and he said. ‘I’m really impressed with how he went at the tournament and look, we're gonna give you a crack at the team’ ”. 

Solomon would be named to make his debut against South Africa on the wing. Despite being a first five in high school Solomon had switched to full back and wing at Petone and adjusted well. Solomon would score a try in a game that finished in a thirteen all draw and would play in three of the five games the baby blacks played on route to a 3rd place finish in the world champs. In 2025 Solomon would go with the Under 20’s to Italy where he would play four of the five games including starting fullback in the final loss to South Africa. When asked about the experience Solomon said “amazing, Italy was just crazy. We were over there in the middle of summer. It was pretty cool. It was 30, 35 degrees on some days, just absolutely out the gate”.  Solomon also had the privilege of leading the haka in this tournament. When he returned to New Zealand he would join the Wellington Lions for their upcoming NPC season. 

In the 2025 NPC Solomon would have a breakout season for the Wellington Lions. He scored 8 tries in nine games including a 3-try hat trick against Manawatu. Solomon’s contract with the Highlanders was also announced around this time however it happened much earlier as he said, “I came back from South Africa in May I got a text from Jamie Joseph, and he wants me to go have a coffee with him”. He continues stating, “I caught up with him, and he offered me a contract, I saw the benefits of it, and I went to the Hurricanes. They didn't have anything to offer Stanley so he signed with the Highlanders. 

Now living in Dunedin Solomon said, “ It's a lot colder but it's cool, the fans are great and the community is tight”. Andrew Knewstubb is who Solomon acknowledges has helped him the most. When talking about Knewstubb he said, “He's turning 31 this year, so he's about 10 years older than me. It's really cool to have someone who's sort of been around the game a little bit longer than I have and experience life a little bit more”. 

When asked about his goals for 2026,  Solomon said, “I'm studying a bachelor of commerce and marketing. So I'll go between Victoria University and Otago. At the moment I'm studying at Otago and I'm doing Māori down here right now. So my goal is to pass all my papers this year and then I want to break 80 in golf this year. Trying to get my handicap down currently off a 12.6. I want to debut for the Highlanders, that'd be really cool”.

Stanley Solomon and the Highlanders can be watched on Sky Sport throughout Super Rugby.

This article was written by 14-year old Harrison Bartholomew from St Bernards College in Lower Hutt. 

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