Flanker Treviranus to lead Samoa's World Cup campaign

The 31-year-old forward, who plays his club rugby in England with London Irish, said he had just been focusing on making the starting lineup for the July 8 fixture, the first ever visit to Apia by the All Blacks.

(Reuters)

"It's always an honour to represent Samoa, but it is something very special when you are asked to captain your team," Treviranus said in a statement on Monday.

Treviranus, a powerful ball carrier known for his big defensive tackles, previously skippered the Samoa side that won the Sevens World Series in 2010.

He played for Irish province Connacht before moving to England with the Exiles after the 2011 rugby World Cup.

Samoa coach Stephen Betham said Treviranus was the obvious choice to lead the side, who have twice made the World Cup quarter-finals.

"Ofisa is a strong force in the Manu Samoa environment and he has the respect of the players on and off the field," Betham said.

(Writing by Patrick Johnston in Singapore; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)